It’s the day after Derby and it’s the first Sunday in May which means it’s time for the monthly IANDS meeting. In a small synchronicity a life coach I spoke with a couple of months ago emails me and says: “I recently joined the IANDS group in my area through meetup (International Association of Near Death Studies) and I thought it may be something you would be interested in. I know you are already connected with groups, but I didn’t know if this was one of them. I haven’t had a near death experience, but I’m highly interested in the subject. My friend (who has had this experience) said the community is so warm, open and loving.” Well, yes they are, Bridgett. In fact I’m going to IANDS in just about an hour to hear Nanci Danison speak. Nanci is a Near Death Experiencer from my hometown, Columbus, OH. I guess she doesn’t speak live much anymore due to health issues. So, the fact that my friend Jennifer got her to speak to our meeting is a big deal. I email Nanci to ask if I can record the meeting to share with our HPH group, but due to memory loss and sometimes substituting words, Nanci doesn’t feel comfortable with being recorded.
Tywana and Kayla go with me. Tywana goes sometimes when we have a speaker. Kayla has never been. I am pleasantly surprised when Kayla accepts my invitation. 1:30 rolls around and Nanci stands to speak. I don’t know what issues this woman is talking about but for a woman, I’m going to guess to be around 68 years old to stand and deliver a presentation for over and hour, then take questions for another 15-20 minutes before taking a break, I am quite impressed. She has no notes and does an excellent job of covering her very detailed, information packed NDE experience(s). It’s one of the richest I have heard with a. couple of follow on visits to the afterlife since the initial experience 24 years ago. I cannot possibly do justice to her presentation in this blog, but the one theme that jumps out at me is the team concept I’ve been reading in The Team books by Frances Key. When Nanci crosses over, she meets five beings of light that cannot wait to greet her and get the download about what her life was like. As she is having her life review, they share the knowledge she has gained, but far more important than that, they literally share in the experience. They can come into her consciousness and experience those moments as she did, or they can experience them through her eyes as themselves. Nanci recovers this ability, which is innate in all of us before we become human, and she and they exchange experiences. This is right in line with The Team concept and with what Natalie Sudman reported in part of her NDE experience. I’m finally starting to understand this concept of Oneness. We are all part of the same Source which divides and subdivides until it gets down to the level of us (or further). We think of ourselves as individuals, for the sake of this experience, but we are more like cells in a body than we know. The biblical metaphor that says we are the body of Christ isn’t just a metaphor. If you haven’t heard Nanci speak or read her books, I encourage you to look her up on YouTube. Here is the most recent one I could find.
After Nanci speaks and is taking a short break. I feel compelled to approach her. I’m not one to push myself on people. As an introvert, I never approach anyone, especially “celebrities”. I give people their space. I know she’s on her break, but I know Kayla and Tywana want to leave. I want to give her some encouragement. Her presentation was spot on, pretty close to perfect. She lost her train of thought once, maybe twice. Who doesn’t? I tell her I am the one who wanted to record her and she has nothing to worry about with being recorded. She tells me she could feel my support from the back of the room. I bend down to give her a hug, also out of character for me since I’ve never met this woman and I was taught that you don’t even extend a hand to a woman first, let alone hug her.
While Nanci is speaking, I see Karen come into the room. Karen is a regular attender, but she suffers from chronic health issues and I haven’t seen her in months. I was hoping she’d come today because Jennifer told me via email her daughter passed suddenly and unexpectedly just a few weeks ago.Tywana and Kayla have already gone outside so I have an excuse to just slip out. I don’t have to approach her and normally, I’d just let it go. But, I’m compelled. I don’t have any idea what I’m going to say to her, but I have to say something. I gently ask how she’s getting along and she tells me about her daughter. But, she immediately follows up with “But, I don’t believe in death.” You see, Karen has been “dead” many times. I think it’s 19. Karen pops in and out of her body on a regular basis. But, even with this knowledge, having her daughter make that transition before her is devastating. We embrace and I tell her I know what she’s going through.
Yeah, Bridgett, IANDS is a pretty special group of people. It’s so nice to walk into a room where people get it, even if I don’t quite get it yet. To meet someone like Nanci and feel an immediate connection, to get to know someone like Karen (who has told me over and over she see Shayna right there with me) and to be able to share the pain of her daughter’s loss with her, even if only for a moment, is to feel the type of connections we come here to make.
