Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Juliet Nightingale

Juliet Nightingale was nearly blind. She experienced several near-death states in her lifetime; in each, her sight was more than perfect and her experiences life-changing. With rare courage she moved around a lot, searching for the right place to live, always starting up Friends of IANDS groups wherever she was, reaching out to others through the media and any opportunity she could find; counseling, teaching, helping. Her radio show, "Towards the Light," became a beacon to untold thousands. It's archives, her legacy to the world. Her website address was www.TowardTheLight.org, and her blog was http://towardthelightorg.blogspot.com. What will become of her archives has yet to be decided. For now, I believe they can still be accessed. During the final weeks and months of her life, she shared with her audience what it was like for her to be dying and what she was going through. DJamil, her daughter, stayed with her and took care of her during the final months. This time together was rich and deep. Last I heard DJamil was thinking of writing a book about her mother's death, and the gift of conscious dying. I'll let you know if this happens.

Juliet died at 1:30 pm on February 28th, my Mother's birthdate. My Mother died the last day of 2007; had she lived, she would have been 92. The next morning, while in prayer, Juliet came to visit me. I heard her first - "Hi Lovey" - her British brogue pronounced and healthy. I turned and saw the upper part of her body, mostly her face, and was struck at how innocent and free she looked, fleshed out and full, light-filled and glowing. She thanked me for praying for her, her words almost playful and musical. Her hair floated about her head as if it were threads of yellow-gold-white, each individual hair alive and glowing. Juliet is free now, and all of us who loved her will miss her. She is in a good place. Yet I know that if DJamil writes that book, it will be a collaboration, a two-some project, a mother/daughter effort to heal themselves, their relationship with each other, and a mighty statement about consciousness and the path of the sacred and holy. I know it will be wonderful.

God bless you Juliet, and DJamil, and all of us, who choose the path of love. PMH

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