..Victoria Barkley..
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Love Never Dies

This workshop — featuring two top psychic mediums, John Holland and Lisa Williams — was a surprisingly different kind of event to attend in midtown Manhattan. Two separate sessions, led by each speaker, gave both Mr. Holland and Ms. Williams equal time on stage and the full attention of over five hundred participants gathered in a Hotel Pennsylvania ballroom.

Mr. Holland (A&E's Mediums: We See Dead People) nearly did not make it due to transportation problems. Despite the 12 hours it took him to get to New York from Florida he appeared energetic and entertaining during his morning presentation. Beginning with brief background information, and mentioning his Hay House radio show (every Monday); he proceeded to reveal some of the ways he receives intuitive information.

"Everything happens for a reason. Traumas change you." He said, referring to a car accident that left him with psychic gifts of talking with the dead that "weirded out" even his sister for the past 20 years. He fought his psychic talent for mediumship until he realized that this was his passion. "Do what you're passionate about!" he told the attendees, "all the doors will open."

Mr. Holland had strangers in the audience shake hands, in order to feel connected with one another, "just like they are all one, on the other side." He asked participants to be aware: "If I come to someone in the audience and you can relate... your message is getting through to you."

Strength of feeling helps pull in the energy. "The more emotion, the stronger the connection enabling communication," he explained, while serving as a connecting link between the "other side" and the recently bereaved.

Separated by a lunch break, Ms. Lisa Williams (Lifetime Network: Life Among the Dead) took the stage for the remainder of the afternoon. A protegé of the late Merv Griffin, this English medium and clairvoyant began with a group meditation for grounding and protection. She recommended prayer and visualizing white light before opening to energies beyond the physical.

Ms. Williams came across as a friendly, warm, compassionate person with a good sense of humor. "When we die, we're getting born. Death is a birth into spirit," she cheerfully assured everyone. Another meditation followed — this one, to help us reach out to a desired someone, through the realm of the imagination. The audience was given a few minutes to discuss who (if anyone) came through and to share insights with those sitting nearby.

When it came to personal readings, Ms. Williams left the stage and walked down a long row of chairs to reach members of the group sitting toward the back of the room. She was intercepted by a quiet male energy, seeking to communicate from spirit, who would not have otherwise caught her attention. It was a generous and lovely gesture on her part, offered to a surprised widow. She gave several more amazing demonstrations of her inborn ability to communicate with the non-physical realm, before ending the afternoon session.

Mr. Holland and Ms. Williams, realizing they could not "read" for everyone, aimed to leave each attendee a bit more skilled in perceiving direct communication by sharing their emotional/mental tools with those present.

The multi-city workshop's New York City date was sold out, well in advance, to an audience of Hay House enthusiasts. Everyone was eager to receive a message from a loved one, to spend a minute or two with a medium, and to be reminded of the surviving power of love. These high expectations were addressed by the two gifted mediums, offering hope and encouraging personal empowerment through workable techniques.

A book signing and photo opportunity wrapped up the event. Born Knowing, Psychic Navigator, and Power of the Soul, were Mr. Holland's books. Ms. Williams is currently writing a book to be released in April, 2008. A CD of her meditations was available for purchase.