Through

BEREAVEMENT
To
HAPPINESS

© 2008

By
Michael Evans and Lily Woodard

This true story could give you a completely

new idea about Life and Death
 First edition

Copyright © Michael Evans & Lily Woodard 2008

Michael Evans & Lily Woodard have asserted their right

under the Copyright, Designs
and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the
authors of this book.

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by

trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise
circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any
form of binding or cover other than that in which
it is published and without a similar condition,
including this condition, being imposed
on the subsequent purchaser.

Printed on demand by Createspace.com

II
 FOREWORD

Bereavement is universal, not so happiness. This tale tells of four

people, Michael, Lily, Nancy and Charlie, describing their
individual lives, highlighted against a background of war and
peace, town and country, hope and despair.
For 45 years Michael and Nancy lived a happy married life
in the West Country, Michael serving in the R.A.F., later a
magistrate, teacher and conservationist. Charlie an outgoing
buoyant engineer, long happily married to Lily, who, emanating
from London’s East End, progressed work-wise in fascinating
ways, together experiencing life in many countries.
The fates then struck. Nancy and Charlie passed away. The
dark and gloomy shadow of bereavement, loneliness, solitariness,
enveloped widower Michael and widow Lily. They suffered that
sense of isolation, separation, that hurts and wounds, the lot of
more and more in today’s demanding, impersonal world.
Yet both adjusted, as they had to, helped by the knowledge
that death is not the end, that the individual spirit survives in a
wider and fuller consciousness. This book describes their faith and
experiences in the revelations of Spiritualism, buttressed by their
contact through mediums with their former spouses, and
particularly by Michael’s dedicated circles and Rescue groups,
succouring confused souls who had found no peace.
The story tells much more. It tells of the search for
companionship, of the gradual flowering of the bond of love
between Michael and Lily and their eventual marriage, achieving
a happiness neither had believed possible. They had journeyed
through the dark days of loss into a brighter world of later joy.
A surprising note is the close link that developed in the
world of spirit between the two departed spouses, who gave their
full and joyous blessing to the couple here below.
This is an uplifting picture of the organic, steady growth of
relationships, for human relationships, here, and beyond, are
everything. All the rest is but commentary. I commend this
admirably told personal story. We will all be bereaved, yet we all
seek happiness. We have much to learn from the lives of these
individuals who, facing the bleakness of bereavement, were yet
finally blessed with the glowing rays of happiness.
Aubrey Rose C.B.E. D.Univ.
III
THROUGH BEREAVEMENT TO
HAPPINESS

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds.

William Shakespeare Sonnet 116

Dedicated to our former spouses.

Nancy and Charlie

Who changed our lives

IV
 Summary of contents

Chapters
Part I
1 In the Depths 1
2 Lily Remembers 6
3 The Message 12
4 The First Three Months 19
5 Paths Cross 24
6 The Visits 33
7 The Private Reading 44
8 Unexpected Attentions 51
9 Guiding Messages 61
10 No Strings Attached 70
11 After the Holiday 90
12 Decision 98
13 Introductions 106
14 Topsham Wins 116
15 The Wedding 135
16 Prophecies Fulfilled 151
17 Fifteen Years On 168

V
 THROUGH BEREAVEMENT
TO HAPPINESS
LOVE CONQUERS DEATH

CHAPTER ONE

IN THE DEPTHS

Some miles apart were two people, each sitting alone,

immersed in the pain of their grief. One was Michael Evans,
a tall, retired schoolteacher of 69 years, who had recently
lost his wife Nancy. He sat in the small terrace house in a
narrow street leading down to the River Exe in Devon. He
was thinking back over his life while a black and white
collie dog watched him from its usual position on the green
settee.
Eighteen miles away, Lily Woodard sat in the living
room of her ancient granite house with its pillared facade,
known to every visitor to the small Dartmoor town. She, too,
had recently lost her husband, the helpful, cheerful, ever-
laughing Charlie, liked and admired by so many. Lily, too,
was thinking back over her life, lost in her grief after so
many years of happy marriage. Neither of them had any idea
how their lives would cross in the years ahead.
For Michael the pain of grief was still keen after three
months of bereavement. Although he and Nancy had
become Spiritualists, twelve years before, and were
convinced of the existence of an afterlife, the loss of his life-
long companion was no less keenly felt. The empty house,
the empty chair, the empty bed, shouted their owner's
complete and final absence. The dog too, he thought, pined
for her absent mistress.
1
 This evening, as a bittersweet occupation, he had
assembled photographs of the various stages of their family
life. There were wedding photos, snaps of the children in the
various stages of growing up; reminders of family holidays,
first with children, then with the children and their children;
and always Nancy, the lively, caring, encouraging mother
and grandmother in the pictures he chose.
He sat thinking about her life. A childhood attack of
endocarditis when she was ten had begun to affect her again
in her sixties. For the last ten years, gradually increasing
heart pains had limited her speed of movement; she, who
when young, had walked so fast that she passed ordinary
walkers as though she was on skates.
When they first met, he had been an RAF Sergeant
Instructor, taking officer cadets on daily route marches, yet
he had had to exert himself to keep up with her on their
country walks. To the end, she had never given in. Only the
previous year, helped by grandchildren, she had climbed to
the top of Hembury, a local hill fort, in slow stages, stopping
to admire the view a dozen times, as she waited for the
angina pains to subside. In the last three days, in spite of
sleepless nights, she had kept up, cooking meals for them
both and their grandchild, Kathleen, who came to lunch.
On the last day, a lovely sunny day, they had driven
their older grandson to Crediton, to take an art examination.
On the way there, she had said to him, ‘If I die, Tim, I’m
going to sort out this communication business!’
On their return she had insisted on cooking lunch. At
half-past eight that evening, she had said, ‘I’ve had enough!
I want to be out of my body. I'm going to bed.’ She had
slowly climbed the stairs for the last time, pausing for breath
at every stair. He had followed her up and lain on the bed,
fully clothed, holding her hand as they talked. By half-past

2
ten, nothing would stop the attacks of angina, and he rang
the doctor's emergency number. The call was diverted to a
locum, who came quickly, gave her an injection and called
an ambulance.
Nancy had been perfectly clear-headed throughout,
more so than Michael, who had a sense of impending
calamity. In spite of an ambulance 'strike', one soon
appeared, and the strong, capable, uniformed men, wrapped
the patient in blankets and carried her to the waiting
ambulance.
He had followed by car with her ready-packed case of
things needed for a hospital stay. For an hour and a half he
had waited anxiously outside the resuscitation room. What
was happening? Why such a wait?
‘Would you like to see your wife for a minute?’ a
nurse asked, coming out of the resuscitation room. Good, he
could see her! Perhaps all was well. He nodded and followed
her. In the room were two doctors and two nurses, who
appeared to be waiting, apparently doing nothing. Nancy
was sitting up on a trolley, conscious, her breathing laboured
under an oxygen mask.
‘A glass of water,’ she managed to mouth at him and
he quickly brought one. He lifted the mask and she took a
sip.
‘Oxygen makes me dry,’ she whispered.
‘I think you had better go now,’ said the nurse, and
once again he was outside, waiting; waiting, in the bare
empty corridor-come waiting room. Was she going to make
it, he wondered? She was not afraid of death, he knew, and
would hate being an invalid. But they might yet do some
medical magic and restore her to health again.
After half an hour, the lady doctor came out. ‘Would
you come and sit here a minute,’ she said, and then,

3
 'I'm afraid she did not make it. The heart was too bad!
There was nothing we could do!’
The terrible finality of the words rang in his head like
a bell. 'Didn't make it! Didn't make it’. So she had gone, his
life's companion had gone.
‘Would you like to see her?’ the doctor asked.
Without speaking, he nodded and followed her through to a
small side room. Nancy's body was lying there, looking
completely at rest in the nightgown she had left home in.
But clearly Nancy, the vibrant, sensitive, articulate Nancy
had gone and left behind the body she no longer needed. She
simply wasn't there.
Half doubtfully, Michael addressed a few words into
the air, words of blessing and encouragement, as she entered
the new life he hoped she would now find.
‘Would you like to sit down and have some tea?’ said
a nurse, her eyes full of sympathy.
He was appreciative, but said, ‘No thank you! I must
get back.’ Driving home in the car, with the case of unused
belongings, he had remembered how, many years before,
they had discussed death and parting, and he had said he
would like to see her, 'safely off’, when the time came. Well
he had done it! Whatever loss and grief he now faced, it was
better this way. He had his health and more resources than
she would have had, had he gone first. His pension would
have died with him, and she was in no state, with a failing
heart, to be left alone to cope.

4
 Charlie and Lily Michael and Nancy
married on 23.12.1939 married on 1.6.1944

5
 CHAPTER TWO

LILY REMEMBERS

In Moretonhampstead, Lily, too, was thinking back

over her eventful life and the many crises she had had to
face. Brought up in London's East End, she had trained in
office work at Clark's College and, at sixteen, she was
abroad, working in Switzerland for a German typewriter
firm. Her ultra-high speed typing had won her the job as a
demonstration typist, going to a. number of exhibitions on
the Continent. She had fallen completely in love with
Switzerland, its lakes, mountains and picturesque houses.
People had said she was beautiful. She only knew
they were kind to her, and admired her ability and
adventurousness. After her experience, growing up in grimy
London, the sunshine and flowers of Switzerland seemed
like heaven on earth. She felt completely at home there and
had no desire to return to London. But then the blow fell.
War with Germany loomed. She was offered a job in
Switzerland, but she knew she was needed at home and,
reluctantly, she had finished her last exhibition and travelled
back across a rapidly arming Europe to get home before the
inevitable war began.
Then she had had to look for work at home. Taken on
as secretary to the managing director of a typewriter firm,
she had been suddenly directed to work instead on
inspection in the factory, now making nothing but munitions
of war. The near hysteria among the men in the factory, at
the advent of the very first female worker, was tempered by
the kindness of the Chief Inspector, Charlie Woodard.
Soon she had vied with the men inspectors in her
speed of work. She had been determined to show them she

6
could cope, although the smell of oil and hot metal was quite
alien to her nature, and 8a.m. to 8p.m. seemed very long
hours.
In the end, with bombs falling nightly, she had
married Charlie. When he was directed to leave the firm to
be an engineer in Betteshanger Colliery, she was appointed
Chief Inspector in his place, working as everyone did,
twelve hours a day, five days a week, and ten hours on
Saturdays and Sundays, so that shopping, even for scanty
rations, became almost impossible.
All their lives, she and Charlie had worked hard. She
had been the one small enough to go through the hollow
metal pipes of the, ‘Pipe Line Under the Ocean,’ checking
for flaws. These were parts for the device, code named,
'Pluto', which, hanging from floats, but submerged beneath
the waves, carried vast amounts of fuel across the channel to
supply the Allied invasion army with petrol.
After the war, with her father ill and penniless, she and
Charlie had taken both her parents with them into the many
successive homes they had acquired in their ever changing
lives, and always enough money had to be found to meet her
parents' needs as well as their own.
She had worked with Charlie in a succession of jobs.
Together they had run a farm with 600 head of cattle. Later
Charlie became a leading plastics engineer, involved in
making specialist one-off structures, such as the dome for a
cathedral in Nigeria, radar scanner dishes, cowlings for the
cameras photographing atomic explosions, and the car
bodies for Lotus Cars. She, too, had worked in plastics and
had her own papers published on plastics design.
When Charlie fell ill in Chile, far from medical help,
she had flown out alone to Arica, a remote place on the
borders of Peru, Bolivia and Chile, where the only

7
medicines available were herbs bought from a local native
stall. In the end Charlie had recovered and set up a factory
production line to make reinforced glass fibre bodies for
British Leyland ‘Minis’, the world-beating small car of its
day The glass fibre bodies were so beautifully finished by
the native workers, that they had all been justifiably proud of
them, especially as they were rust proof and could outlast
steel bodies. When they left, the Ambassador had said
farewell and presented Charlie with the hand-made, leather-
covered table of Aztec design, she still had upstairs.
Always, together, they had survived crises. First her
father had died, leaving her to give up work to look after her
now senile, almost blind mother. After 10 years of that
struggle, and her own illness that followed, she had
gradually recovered and developed her own hobby of
machine knitting, so that she had shown her wares at craft
exhibitions.
They had been local affairs not like the huge plastics
exhibitions that she and Charlie had attended on the
continent where, for a few days of luxury, they had stayed in
some of the best hotels in Europe.
But this last tragedy was much the worst she had ever
encountered. At first things had gone well. After months of
illness and hospital visits, Charlie had been declared fit by
the doctor at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and they
had set out for home. The route back from the hospital to
their home at Mortonhampstead was, in summer, one of the
prettiest in Devon. With hundreds of bends, and new views
revealed by every twist and turn of the way, the narrow road
to Dartmoor was loved by tourists.
On this day the 22nd December, the wind was
blowing a gale, the rain had been torrential, floods were
everywhere, and they were relieved when they finally

8
arrived home, feeling very joyful about the hospital report.
Soon they knew the roads would be impassable. Once home,
Lily realised that urgent letters had not been posted. As,
'Lucky,’ the Jack Russell dog, had not had her walk, Lily
braved the wind and rain to walk with her to the post office,
a quarter of a mile away. As she walked, a sudden, vivid
flash of lightning surprised her and frightened the dog. As
the dog pulled in fear, she lost her balance and fell on the
granite kerb, and then into the road. She heard bones break
in her arm as she landed. Fearfully she had managed to
regain her feet, still clutching the dog's lead in the hand of
her good arm. She was streaming with muddy water and her
first thought had been to wonder whether she could hide her
injury and act normally to avoid upsetting Charlie who had
been so ill. Then she realised her muddy clothes could not
be hidden.
She was still trembling from the shock and a little
afraid, as she knew the road back to the hospital would now
be impassable.
Charlie had, for many years, been a member of St.
John's Ambulance Brigade. Soon her wet clothes were
peeled off and the movements of her wrist and fingers
checked. Charlie placed the injured arm in a sling. She had
said nothing of the breaks she could feel in the upper arm
and shoulder. Within a few hours she noticed that from the
fingertips to the shoulder, her arm had turned black.
The next day had been her birthday. She had tried to
ignore the pain in her arm and, with Charlie's help, she
baked a cake and prepared meals. Later they had risked
taking the car to deliver Christmas presents they had ready
for friends and neighbours. When they arrived home again,
Charlie had happened to see her blackened arm.
‘Look at that arm,’ he had said, ‘that’s the worst I've

9
seen in all my time with St. John’s.’ Although they were
now retired, their lives were still so busy that they had
decided to have a quiet Christmas. With one arm, and
Charlie's help, she had cooked a Christmas lunch. After the
meal, they had sat quietly, except for making and receiving
phone calls from friends far and wide. Charlie was a healer
and had many patients who relied on his visits and with
whom he liked to keep in touch.
On Boxing Day morning, Lily had decided to see if
she could get her damaged arm into a cardigan. Charlie was
sitting in his chair with the Jack Russell, as usual, draped
around his neck. Ever since she was a puppy, she had loved
to lie like this on Charlie's broad shoulders. As Lily prepared
to go upstairs, he caught her hand and said. ‘We'll make up
for this when all is better.’ A few minutes later, Lily had
heard the 'phone ringing, ringing. She wondered why
Charlie didn't answer it. The 'phone was still ringing as she
came downstairs and Charlie was sitting in the chair,
looking very white. Her first thought was that he had
fainted. With one arm she started to put his head down but
realised she could not support his weight if she did so. Then
there was a terrible realisation! Suddenly she knew there
was nothing she could do. He was dead! Charlie the tireless,
always cheerful Charlie was dead!
A lifetime of hidden bitterness, for all the many things
that had gone wrong in the past, swept over her. She begged
him not to leave her at Christmas, and just when she needed
him most. After a while she grew calmer. She 'phoned the
doctor but she knew nothing could be done. He came within
minutes, only to confirm what she already knew. All her life
she had to brace herself to face disaster. After the first flood
of tempestuous tears, she felt strong enough to do what had
to be done.

10
 ‘It's all right to grieve you know,’ the doctor had said,
as he kindly put an arm on her good shoulder. Somehow she
had turned off her tumultuous emotions and she heard
herself say, ‘If they needed him there, more than I needed
him here, at Christmas, it must have been necessary, I'll cope
somehow.’
She heard the doctor reply, ‘What a wonderful way to
look at it - but what's wrong with your arm?’ She had
explained briefly about the fall. He examined the arm and
pronounced it broken in three places but the sling had been
put on properly and there was not much more he could do.
Two days later, another doctor had called and brought the
death certificate. ‘You know where we are if you want us.’
he said, and departed into the gale that was still blowing.

11
 CHAPTER THREE

A MESSAGE

Michael had now assembled his chosen photographs

on a piece of backing card. He had found an old picture
frame, inserted the photos, and hung it on the wall where he
could see it from his armchair.
His mind went back to that black day in November
when Nancy had left him. She had died at 1 a.m. on
Thursday the 30th. He had driven home, quickly walked the
dog, and gone to bed at about 2.30 a.m. The next day was a
blur of activity, 'phone calls, and lists of things to be done.
When he told people the news, their distress triggered his
own and his tears had flowed unchecked. They were a
natural relief to the pain within. On the Friday morning he
had a memorable 'phone call. A member of the local
Spiritualist Church, of which he was secretary, rang him.
‘Hello Michael.’
‘Yes?’
'Just to let you know what happened last night'.
'Yes, what was that?' The speaker was Jean, a
clairvoyant and healer.
'We were saying prayers at the end of evening healing
in the church when I got a message.’
'Yes?'
'It was from Mrs Burbidge, a well-known Spiritualist
of years ago. She just said this: ‘DON'T WORRY. I AM
LOOKING AFTER NANCY!’ I thought you'd like to
know.’
He managed to say, ‘Thank you. That's marvellous.
Thank you very much!’
Although, as a Spiritualist, Michael was quite
12
accustomed to receiving messages from those who had
passed on, this had not always been the case. Originally a
scientifically minded agnostic, only a severe injury to his
spine which orthodox medicine could not cure, had brought
him in despair into a Spiritualist Church for healing. In the
church, a young man who had not actually touched him, but
had held his hands over the affected part, had healed him in
ten minutes.
He and Nancy had been so impressed by the healing,
and the fact that he could, resume his teaching career, that
they had started to attend the services at the church. At first
Michael had sat listening to the messages passed to various
members of the congregation with a sceptical attitude. He
could not believe that the dead were not finally extinguished
and gone. Yet, as detailed evidence piled up and his mother,
father and brother came through with characteristic and
evidential messages, he had finally given in and accepted
that there was a life after death in a new dimension and
communication was possible. But would Nancy be able to
get a message through?
The message from Jean had given him a glimmer of
hope, a hope that was to be fulfilled beyond anything he
would have imagined possible.
Both he and Nancy had been members of meditation
groups. One had been held in their home for some years and
another was held at the house of a friend, a nurse, who was
also a medium. Because of this they had a number of friends
with varying degrees of psychic ability. He had started
'phoning members of the meditation group with the sad
news. When he rang Sheila, she was sympathetic but not
altogether surprised. Within half an hour she rang him back.
'I was just coming out of the shower,' she said, 'when I
heard Nancy's voice clearly asking me to give you a

13
message. It was this:
‘PLEASE TELL MICHAEL NOT TO FORGET THE
CHRISTMAS PRESENTS FOR THE GRANDCHILDREN
IN THE TOP CUPBOARD OF THE LIVING ROOM.
ALSO THAT SOME LITTLE BITS OF JEWELLERY
THAT WOULD COMFORT LITTLE KATHLEEN, ARE
IN A BAG IN THE CABINET BY THE HATCH.'
‘Thank you! Thank you!’ he said. ‘Did you see her?’
‘No, I just heard her voice in my head. I couldn't
mistake her voice. She sounded fine’.
With this message, so characteristic of Nancy, new
light began to dawn in the dark despair of Michael's grief.
Nancy had come through, incredibly, within two days of
passing!
When his granddaughter, Kathleen, came later that
afternoon, after crying for hours at home, she went straight
to the cabinet by the hatch and took out the little bag of
jewellery she had always loved to play with when she
visited her granny. Her tears ceased as she sat quietly in the
corner, fingering the well-known bits of family jewellery.
In spite of all he had to do, Michael felt drawn to go
to the Saturday meeting at the Spiritualist Church, where
two new mediums were to take the service, They were
Victor and Barbara Kear-Morgan from Bath. In the final part
of the service, Barbara came directly to him and said:
‘I HAVE A LOVELY LADY HERE. SHE WAS A
VERY CARING SOUL WHO THOUGHT OF
EVERYONE BEFORE HERSELF. SHE WANTED TO DO
SO MUCH, BUT WAS TOLD SHE MUST STOP AND
HAVE SOME REST AND PEACE. SHE SAYS THE
SAME MUST APPLY TO YOU! YOU MUST HAVE
SOME REST AND PEACE. SHE SENDS YOU DEEP
LOVE!’

14
 This message from a complete stranger had rung so
true that he felt a fresh surge of hope and gratitude. The
feelings of love and thankfulness almost overwhelmed him.
He longed to tell his family and friends the news.
He had always carefully recorded messages and now
this one was noted down.
The following day, longing to hear more news, he had
arranged to go to the three o'clock service at the church, with
Sheila, who had always been close to Nancy. Towards the
end of the service, Victor, the medium came to him with a
message about his life going straight ahead, but nothing was
said about Nancy.
As the service ended, he had felt disappointed, having
had such a clear message the day before.
Sheila, a psychic, who had sat on his left during the
service, looked delighted.
‘Why the smiles?’ He said,
‘I'VE HAD NANCY SITTING BESIDE ME
DURING THE SERVICE’, she said, 'THIS TIME SHE
WAS QUITE CLEAR. SHE SAID THAT YOU WOULD
GET THE NEXT MESSAGE BUT ONE, WHICH YOU
DID, AND THAT YOU HAD TWO PAIRS OF SOCKS
ON.’
That morning he had been busy, as Nancy had
requested, clearing out all her clothes from a chest of
drawers, to send to a refugee camp abroad. He had been
quite alone in the house, as he thought, when he came across
a brand new pair of dark socks in her drawer and, as it was a
very cold day, he had put them on over his own short socks.
No one could have known this because the inner socks were
quite invisible.
It came to him with great force that Nancy had
watched him put them on. His heart leapt as he thought of

15
her presence there in the room as he worked to carry out her
suggestion about the clothes. So she had been that close!
In spite of his grief, he suddenly, strangely, felt lucky.
He had no mediumistic powers himself and if this had
happened to them years ago, when he knew nothing of these
matters, he would have had no way of hearing from her or
indeed, any ray of hope in his bereavement.
Nancy's messages continued to come. A few days
later, another gifted friend, Valerie, a medical secretary, sent
him a beautifully typed account of her messages from
Nancy. It said that on Monday 4th December, she had been
meditating at home, when she distinctly heard Nancy's
familiar voice saying,
‘HELLO VALERIE! HOW ARE YOU? THERE'S
NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT, YOU KNOW, IT WAS
SO EASY! I JUST SORT OF SLIPPED OUT!' Then, after a
pause, ‘I'M REALLY QUITE LOOKING FORWARD TO
THURSDAY.’
Thursday was to be the day of the funeral when she
would see many of her family and friends gathered together.
The typed account went on, 'It was during the funeral that I
heard Nancy's voice again. She said,
‘HELLO VALERIE! I'M GLAD YOU COULD
COME!’ then, stronger than ever, as we were singing the
23rd Psalm, ‘ISN'T IT FUNNY? HERE I AM AND HALF
THE PEOPLE DON'T EVEN KNOW IT’. The note
continued, 'Nancy sounded so bright and cheerful and
amused by it all that I nearly laughed out loud.'
The account went on to say that, the next, day, Valerie
had been ill in bed, not thinking of anything in particular,
when she heard Nancy's voice again,
‘HELLO VALERIE! HOW ARE YOU TODAY?’
Then they had a long conversation together, which she could

16
not remember in detail, but when she asked her, what it was
like for her, she answered,
‘LOVELY! PEACE! NO PAIN!’ and she gave the
impression that there would be quite a lot more
communication in the future.
Later, Valerie had typed out what she had already
partly described to Michael and the rest of the group. The
meditation group had met again for the first time after the
funeral on December 18th. At first Valerie had wondered if
Nancy would, 'come through' again, but nothing happened.
Then she heard Nancy's voice in her head, more strongly
than ever, saying,
‘IT'S MUCH BETTER WHEN YOU DON'T TRY
SO HARD!’
She told Valerie that she had been around the group.
‘I PUT MY ARMS AROUND MICHAEL; I DON'T
KNOW IF HE KNEW. THEN I STOOD IN 'MY PLACE’
BEFORE MOVING ON TO BRETT. TELL HIM I LIKE
HIS JUMPER!’
Valerie then felt Nancy come to her and put her arms
around her. She wrote, ‘Words can't even begin to describe
the feeling of love and caring warmth that enveloped me. I
was completely surrounded by all this incredible feeling, and
I just, could not physically or mentally cope with it for more
than a few seconds and I broke down in tears. All I can say
is, if that was a glimpse or insight into the feeling of love
and joy that awaits us all, Nancy must be so happy now.’
Michael read the beautifully typed sheets again and
again with a full heart. He then stored them carefully away
with his other records. When, earlier on, he had called at the
surgery for the death certificate, the duty doctor had said,
'You must expect the usual stages of grief to affect you. You
will, at times, experience loss, anger, depression, even

17
resentment, before you can accept your wife's death calmly.'
He had hesitated before replying. The doctor was busy
as he was himself. Should he take time to explain? He knew
he must face loneliness and loss from now on, but he was
buoyed up by a warm feeling of wonder and gratitude for the
way events were unfolding. He decided not to bother but just
to thank him and get on with all the necessary things he had
to settle in this new bleak phase of his life.

18
 CHAPTER FOUR

THE FIRST THREE MONTHS

Lily's profound emotions had remained almost

completely suppressed. She was in a state of shock. She felt
totally alone. She now had no family, no near close friends,
no means of transport. Charlie had been the driver in any
case and she would have no money now to run a car.
Charlie was a healer, and had innumerable friends,
and she now had to break the news to them. They could not
believe that the cheerful laughing man had gone. Many of
his healing patients had spoken to him only 24 hours before
and they wept at the news that he was gone, never to cheer
or heal them again. Their tears had added to her own
feelings of loss and isolation.
A healer friend, Margaret, offered to come and stay as
Lily could not cope with the lively terrier and needed help to
do so many ordinary things with only one good arm.
Margaret stayed for a month but as she had just lost the use
of her own car through a road accident, Lily had to rely on
Charlie's friends to ferry her on essential journeys. Eunice, a
practical and kindly woman, drove her to the crematorium
where an amazing crowd of mourners had come to say
'goodbye’ to Charlie. Eunice, who had hardly known Lily
before, was later to become a devoted friend and helper.
Lily found it hard to describe the emotions she felt at
that time. She could not cry and suffered no apparent grief
during the service, which, although simple, had emphasised
the devotion so many people felt for Charlie who had spent
his life helping others. Something inside her had told her
that all would be well and it was no use worrying about how
she was to manage. There were many problems, she knew.

19
Could she manage to stay in the large house that they
rented? Could she cope with the large productive garden
they had worked together? How would she manage
financially? Somehow, she felt a solution would be found,
and she concentrated on the immediate tasks, all of which
took longer than usual because of her damaged arm.
The first three months after the funeral had been a
dreadfully sad time. She missed Charlie so much as they had
always worked together and shared everything. In the garden
there were precious plants she had moved from house to
house over the years as well as new fruit trees needing
attention. ‘Lucky,’ the Jack Russell, had spent hours lying
on the wide windowsill of the ancient house, looking out for
her beloved master's return. A brown terrier, she had gone
white around her mouth with the shock of Charlie's death.
Lily and Charlie had been Spiritualists for some years.
The thought that tormented her was, ‘How could Charlie
contact her?’ He had never gone anywhere in fifty years
without saying 'Goodbye.' She knew he wouldn't be happy
until he had explained to her what had happened. She also
feared that unless she could go back to church and meet
people soon, she might not ever have the courage to go
again with Charlie gone.
The weather had been appalling in January and
February and she felt unsettled in the old house on her own
with the gale whistling round the huge chimneys. She
longed to go to church to see if she would get a message
from Charlie. She had often had messages there from
departed friends. Surely Charlie would be able to come
through.
At last on 25th February, Margaret, who now had a
car, came to drive her the eighteen miles to her Spiritualist
Church. The medium taking the service did give her a

20
message but she did not mention Charlie. The message was,
‘Don’t worry! All will be well. Don't be pressed into signing
anything without careful thought. Enjoy the flowers.’
As she had received many presents of flowers, this
seemed quite evidential, and to the point, but it was not what
she had hoped for.
On March 4th she was again taken to church and this
time she did get a message from Charlie through a visiting
medium from Exeter called John Greene. He said,
'Charlie is here and he says look to August next year for a
special happening. He has been sitting beside you and
knows you have been very depressed. You must take care of
your knee. You must look after yourself and not so much
others. He says he had not been able to get his breath. He
sends his love.'
This was an answer to the question she had been so
concerned about. Had he suffered and why had he not called
out? It was true that, years ago, she had injured her knee
falling in a milking parlour at the farm and it did give her
trouble. This message lifted her spirits and gave hope of
further contact. Her days passed reasonably well. A stream
of visitors, phone calls and letters kept her busy. Ever since
she had spent two years as a solicitor's clerk, she had had an
interest in legal and social matters and she often acted as a
kind of Citizen's Advice Bureau to people baffled by
bureaucratic forms or injustice. She had helped several
people, including Margaret, to claim compensation after
suffering injury and loss in an accident. These affairs, and
the long garden, occupied her days, but she felt as though
she was in a dream, waiting for some unknown thing to
happen.
The nights were unsettling. The house was very old;
parts of it dated back to 1485. She and Charlie had worked

21
happily bringing the dilapidated building up to its present
liveable state, but the whole place groaned and creaked in
the winter storms as the winds battered the thatch.
One night, a horde of mysterious creatures had run to
and fro over her bedroom ceiling, while others had run about
in the two-foot gap between her bedroom floor and the
ceiling of the living room below. The sound of the scurrying
of innumerable feet, and the squealing of the creatures above
and below, terrified the little dog that was normally a
determined hunter. She cowered in fear at this visitation
while Lily passed a sleepless night, wondering what animals
they could possibly be to make such a noise. They never
returned and she never found out what they were but with a
ladder and Eunice's help, she managed to put poisoned bait
into the roof space. In this roof space were layers of
accumulated dust and debris. It was the smoke blackened
beams beneath the thatch that first proved to the historians
of the National Trust that the roof had been in use in the
days before houses had chimneys, many centuries ago.
On Sunday 11th March, Margaret came to spend the
day with her and take her to church. The speaker, a tall
bespectacled man called Michael Evans, mentioned his own
recent loss of his wife and described briefly some
communications he had already had from her. He also read
from a book a passage that brought deep feelings welling to
the surface in Lily, so that, although she longed to speak to
him and ask him the name and author of the book, she was
too choked with emotion to speak. She wondered, too, how
he could hide his own grief so well. Lily knew she could not
possibly have spoken publicly so soon after her loss.
The passage in the book stayed in her mind so
persistently that eventually she felt she must trace it. She
found Mr Evans’ phone number and asked him for details of

22
the book. Three days later, to her surprise, a parcel arrived in
the post. It was the book, 'Testimony of Light'. A note said:
‘I thought you'd like to have the book quickly-it may be
some time before you can buy it. Best wishes, Michael
Evans.’
On 17th March, for no particular reason, something
urged her to bake for the first time since Charlie's death.
Soon she had fruitcake, sponges and biscuits cooling, ready
to put into tins. She decided to cheer herself up by changing
from her old gardening clothes into something more
presentable. As she came down stairs again, wondering how
she would ever eat all the things she had baked, now she was
on her own, there was a knock at the door.

23
 CHAPTER FIVE

PATHS CROSS

Like other bereaved people, Michael had periods

when he felt lost and unhappy. When he came home there
was no one to speak to. If an interesting thing happened,
there was no one to share it with. When a problem arose
there was no one to discuss it with. At the supermarket,
where they had always shopped together, he had to brace
himself to face going in alone, and often he would think, for
a moment, that he saw Nancy's familiar figure pushing a
trolley at the end of an aisle, waiting for him. On the
recreation ground, where he exercised his dog, she, too,
would rush up to anyone looking like Nancy, asking them to
throw her ball for her. Yet, compared with most bereaved
people, he still felt he was fortunate. He attended the same
friendly groups that they had both belonged to. He had a car
and sufficient income for his needs. His duties as church
secretary occupied him, and brought him into human contact
with members of the committee and congregation. For some
years he had taken services, together with a medium, in
various churches in Devon and Cornwall, and he also gave
talks on both Spiritualism and Conservation at various
centres in the West Country.
Strangely enough, for a man, he quite enjoyed
housework, shopping and cooking. He knew that Nancy had
a fear that left on his own, he might do as a neighbour had
done when widowed, and slide into an untidy and
unhygienic squalor. For this reason, he enjoyed being
meticulous with housework, especially as he could listen to
his favourite tapes or radio programmes as he worked.
On March 11th, he was due to go with the medium,

24
Marian Bellfield, to take a service at a Church some ten
miles away. Later that week, a lady rang him to ask the
name of the book he had read from during the service. The
book was, ‘Testimony of Light,’ by Helen Greaves, and he
gave her the details over the 'phone. The lady, Lily
Woodard, explained that she had been too overcome by
emotion, because of her own recent loss, to be able to
approach him for the details after the service,
Michael put down the 'phone and stood thinking. He
knew it would be many weeks before she would get the
book from the publishers and she sounded in real need. On
an impulse he picked up his copy of the book and posted it
to her, finding her address from the 'phone book. A few days
later he received a letter of thanks. Enclosed were stamps to
the value of those used to post the book.
On March 17th the day was sunny and Michael's
grandchildren who lived nearby had started their school
holiday. He knew the two boys had talked of exploring the
old disused railway line, which ran from Bovey Tracey to
Mortonhampstead. The boys were aged 13 and 15 and still
willing to go with an adventure-loving grandfather. When he
suggested the expedition, they jumped at the idea and, with
two collie dogs; they were soon travelling through the
beautiful Devonshire countryside in his old Audi car.
After stopping and studying the one-inch map, they
found a small turning leading to the old railway line. The
spirit of adventure gripped the boys and they ran about
ahead of Michael, exploring and exclaiming at abandoned
equipment on the deserted line. Primroses, periwinkles and
early daffodils surrounded all the old signals, dilapidated
bridges and rusting machinery. Full of excitement at every
new find, the boys rushed on and on, with the dogs at their
heels, but time were passing and, at last, they agreed to

25
return to the car. As they got in and began to negotiate the
narrow lanes, the idea came to Michael that they were near
Mortonhampstead and he could call on the lady who had
asked about the book. Asking directions, he found his way
to the old granite-pillared home and knocked at the door. A
dog barked and a lady holding a Jack Russell terrier in her
arms opened the door. She had an enquiring look on her
intelligent, lively face.
‘Excuse me’, he said, 'I’m Michael Evans. I sent you
the book and I've called to see if you liked it.’ A smile lit up
the lady's face.
‘Won't you come in?’ she asked.
‘I can't stop’, he replied, ‘I'm afraid I've got two
grandsons in the car and two dogs’.
‘Bring the boys in’, she said, ‘Will the dogs be all
right in the car? Only I've got this one’. She nodded at the
terrier, enthusiastically trying to welcome him with a pink
tongue.
‘Oh yes’, he replied, 'they are tired out from a long
walk. They'll be all right.’
Soon Michael and the two boys were seated at a table
in the white-walled living room. Flowers were all around
them on the wide windowsills of the ancient house, and they
could see others in the back garden through the small paned
windows.
The lady provided tea and a lavish assortment of
cakes and biscuits. The visitors soon realised that their
hostess must be an exceptional cook. Everything they were
offered looked professionally perfect and tasted delicious.
Although signs of strain and grief were visible in her face,
Lily entertained the boys with tales of her adventurous life,
especially the episodes in the high Andes Mountains of
South America. Andrew, the younger boy, said,

26
 ‘You ought to write a book, it's so interesting!’ ‘I've
often thought of it,’ she said, ‘and I'm collecting material for
it.’
After looking around the large garden, the visitors
went on their way with expressions of thanks for such a
welcome tea. Driving home, Michael thought with interest
of the fascinating house and the interesting lady. He could
see that behind the hospitality and cheerfulness lay a deep
sadness, steadfast endurance and many pressing problems.
He had a feeling that something important had happened
which he could not put his finger on. It had stirred
something deep inside him. Was it interest, compassion? He
did not know.
Michael's life became busier and busier. Although he
was content to work in the house or garden in the day, he
felt a strong desire to leave the emptiness of the house in the
evening and visit friends or sit in the meditation groups he
and Nancy had been members of. Doing this he felt less
lonely and at the back of his mind was always the hope that
a psychic friend would bring him news of Nancy.
He had arranged for Nancy's sister, Betty, who had
come to help him when her sister died, to come and stay.
The oldest of the three sisters, she was as lively and
energetic as a twenty-year old and still took part in
archaeological excavations. History and archaeology were
her hobbies and he knew she would be interested in the
ancient house in Mortonhampstead. He telephoned Lily and
asked permission to bring Betty on a visit. Lily invited them
to tea and told them the story of the old granite building,
which had been a monastery and a hospital at different
periods and was now owned by The National Trust, from
whom she rented it. She explained how she and Charlie,
working together, had installed the bathroom and central

27
heating and reclaimed the garden, abandoned for so many
years. A gardener herself, Betty took a keen interest in the
varieties of clematis and roses, the bullace, fig and mulberry
trees and the many kinds of soft fruit bushes,
A week later Michael called again with the two boys,
Andy and Tim, after walking on Dartmoor. They were given
refreshments but the visit could not be a long one as a friend
had arrived to take Lily to a service at her church and there
was not enough time for conversation as before.
Partly because of grief, Michael kept as busy as ever.
After nineteen years on the local bench, he had retired early
from duties as a magistrate in order to be with Nancy. He
was however, still chairman of a conservation society and a
member of the County Conservation Forum. He felt the
remedy for grief was to keep busy, to seek company and,
where possible, to help others who were worse off than he
was. Although now retired from teaching, he was chairman
of the Board of Governors of a local school and he still kept
in touch with children, teachers, and the new Education
Reform Acts, concerning which, new information arrived
nearly every week.
His grandson, Tim, was very interested in re-
incarnation and Buddhism. Michael had been taking him to
weekly meetings at a local farmhouse where a form of
regression known as Psycho-expansion was taught. Nancy
had, earlier, been to some of the sessions and had had
remarkable experiences of what seemed like previous lives.
Tim, too, could sometimes experience these other lives.
Michael continued to go to the weekly sessions with Tim,
although he was never very convinced by his own
experiences. Often he felt as though he was creating the
scenes he saw, in order to have something to enter in his
notebook.

28
 What was certainly remarkable was the variety and
detail of the scenes that appeared in his mind's eye. Far more
than he could imagine or visualise in a waking state in six
minutes. Only two memories seemed to him to be really
convincing, in that they were unexpected and so startlingly
vivid that he never forgot them. One appeared when he was
asked to go to the year 1130 A.D. He felt he was a baby of
about six months, lying on his mother's lap. The room was
dark and gloomy, his mother smelt far from clean and his
father, standing dark and bearded nearby, seemed to tower
so high above them both that he was almost out of sight. He
knew his mother loved him but there was some
disagreement between his mother and the tall man which he
sensed but could not understand. Another vivid memory was
of being a girl of thirteen, wearing her best frock with puffed
sleeves while sitting alone in the parlour of a farmhouse. As
the girl, he knew that outside the door was the passage
leading to the big farm kitchen. The year was about 1780
A.D. and she was looking out of the small-paned windows at
the men working in her father's fields. She was wondering
what the men were like at home to their children and wives,
for, she thought, ' I don't really know any other men except
my father.’
Convincing or not, the sessions were interesting and
the atmosphere in the house was serene and comforting.
Both the owner and the teacher were practising healers and
the loving atmosphere could be felt on entering the gardens
even before entering the farmhouse. One day he had a
'phone call. Both the leaders would be away, lecturing, and
the Friday session would have to be cancelled - unless
perhaps, Michael would agree to take it. He had a moment
of doubt. Could he do it? Certainly he knew the procedure
and the music required. There was no hypnotism involved,

29
only suggestion. There was a big book of exercises together
with the ‘count down’ wording. Yes he would do it, or at
least he would have a try.
Eight people were gathered for the session, including
Tim. After introductions and completing the record book,
Michael went through the usual procedure they all knew,
with it's warning that they could cut short any unpleasant
experiences and return at once to the here and now. He
started the gentle music and fought against the temptation to
obey his own instructions and go to 1200 A.D. After seven
minutes he recalled them and switched off the music. They
all began to write busily in their notebooks, recording their
experiences. Had he managed to regress them then? After
another ten minutes, when nearly all had finished writing, he
asked each in turn, if they were willing, to describe what
they had experienced.
The first lady, a gentle, quiet soul, recalled vividly a
life in which she had been a man, the leader of a nomadic
group of hunter-gathers on some dry, hot scrubland, possibly
in Africa. The man had seven wives and twenty-seven
children. He affected not to care for the children; that was
women's business. He thought of himself as masculine, a
leader and hunter but secretly, he dearly loved one child, a
little disabled boy with a sweet nature.
The man knew he was growing old and might die and
he was very concerned as to whether his oldest son and head
wife would remember to carry out the exact details of his
funeral ceremony, which, he felt, were vitally important to
his future in the life beyond death. The lady then
experienced the man's death and his viewing of his own
funeral, and she felt his satisfaction as the ceremony was
carried out precisely as he wished.
Michael felt that the life described could hardly have

30
been more different from the lady's own quiet life. As the
others told of their vivid experiences, he realised with a little
surprise that he could do what was required to regress
people and, indeed, perhaps anyone could do it, if they
followed a suitable formula of words in a suitable setting.
At the Thursday meditation group, Nancy sometimes
communicated through the medium and always she seemed
happy. An early message passed through Marian was,
'Nancy was standing behind you dressed in a 1930s
style wedding dress, signifying a new beginning for her. She
was giving you an armful of lilac and singing,
‘WE'LL GATHER LILACS IN THE SPRING
AGAIN,’ and laughing because she is singing slightly 'off
key.' She says,
‘THERE IS A LOT OF WORK FOR YOU TO DO
YET.’ She says ‘HAS BRETT A SON WHO HAS
DIFFICULTY IN READING?’ She says, ‘TELL HIM NOT
TO WORRY NOW - LEAVE IT TO THE SUMMER!’
Brett, a handsome young grower of organic
vegetables, was in the meditation group that met at
Michael's house. Nancy had often been to his home in the
country and had promised, if she could, to come back to him
with an evidential message if she passed. On making
enquiries, Michael found that Brett’s son was having reading
problems, so the message was passed on. By the following
autumn the boy was reading successfully and all was well.
A little after this, Nancy communicated with Sheila in
the group meeting at Michael's house. Sheila said,
‘Nancy's here! She is showing me that she visits us
all at our homes. She says,
‘JOHN, I SEE YOU COMING BACK FROM
SCHOOL, PUTTING ON YOUR SLIPPERS, LEANING
BACK AND SAYING, ‘THANK GOD THAT'S OVER!

31
SUZANNE, I SEE YOU HAVING A GLASS OF
SHERRY.’
Suzanne: ‘I had one before I came out tonight!’
‘BRANDON, I SEE YOU HAVING A NICE BAR
OF.CHOCOLATE WHICH YOU KEEP WELL HIDDEN.’
Brandon: ‘Too right, I do. You have to in our house.’
‘BRETT, I SEE YOU COLLAPSE INTO BED AT
NIGHT AND YOU THINK, ‘THANK GOD! THAT'S ALL
DONE AND THE KIDS ARE ASLEEP.’ (Brett has five
young children).
‘MICHAEL, I SEE YOU SITTING ON YOUR BED AT
NIGHT, THINKING, THAT'S DONE AND THAT'S
DONE AND THAT'S OK, CHECKING OFF A LIST.’
Michael: ‘I've been doing that recently.’
It was noticeable that Nancy was already sufficiently
advanced to be able to project pictures into Sheila's mind as
evidence, as well as sending words of explanation. There
was no doubt she was doing well. Michael wondered if she
had had to judge her past life yet? He had heard that, even
for the best of people, this could be a harrowing experience.
It was some months before he received two messages about
this. In one she said,
'I HAD SOME PRIDE WHEN I CAME OVER, BUT
YOU SOON LOSE THAT.’
In the other, the medium said, 'SHE SAYS SHE
REVIEWS HER LIFE, A BIT AT A TIME, NOT TO
REGRET BUT TO LEARN.’

32
 CHAPTER SIX

THE VISITS

Lily had been taken aback when she opened the door
to find Michael Evans on the doorstep. She was grateful to
him for sending the book, which she was thoroughly
enjoying, and she had meant to write again to thank him
when she posted the book back to him. He looked very
different from when she had seen him in church, wearing a
formal grey suit. He looked younger in corduroys and an
open necked-shirt, dressed for walking on the moor, but he
looked so very tired, as though nearly exhausted, and she
gladly invited him in with the two boys he had with him.
She was so glad that she had had that unreasoning, intuitive
urge to bake that morning, so that now she could offer them
a good homemade tea. She was, as well, glad she had put on
some better clothes, almost as if she had known she would
have visitors.
They had a lively conversation about the book with its
wonderful description of the afterlife, and she enjoyed
seeing them tuck in with a will to the tea she provided. The
boys asked about the history of the house and the curios on
the wall that she had collected and they listened intently to
her tales of travel in far off countries.
When the visitors departed, Lily found her spirits had
lifted. She realised how starved of conversation she had
been. She enjoyed meeting them and talking to Michael,
who obviously understood her emotional feelings, and she
had very much enjoyed giving pleasure and sustenance to
hungry visitors. For her, life in April was still busy.
Neighbours called with problems over pensions and
allowances. Some of Charlie's patients 'phoned when in

33
trouble and she did what she could to calm or advise them.
On April 3rd, she happened to listen to a local radio
'phone in' programme. A man 'phoned in, in a very
distressed state, weeping copiously as he asked how to cope
with bereavement. Lily thought many people would answer
his cry for help but she felt so touched by his distress that
she wrote to him, through the radio station, explaining that
she, too, had just lost a partner after many years of happy
marriage and she understood how he felt. She did not
foresee the consequences of her letter.
On 13th April she received a letter from the man,
Brian, thanking her for her letter and the articles on
bereavement she had enclosed. He revealed that his wife had
committed suicide and Lily's letter was the only one he had
received after his appeal for help. He poured out all his
distress in the letter and so she began to write to him, and
telephone him when she could, to try to cheer him up in his
heartrending grief.
At her Spiritualist Church, the service was always
tape-recorded and the forty-five minute recording normally
included most of the messages passed to members of the
congregation at the end of the service. When Lily was next
able to attend, the medium said that before beginning the
clairvoyance she had something to say:
'When I was getting ready to come to church, Charlie
Woodard materialised in front of me. He said:
‘I'M CHARLIE! I'M CHARLIE! TELL LILY I
LOVE HER AND I'M HAPPY!’ So I had to pass that on
first.’ Naturally, the message delighted Lily and she
arranged to borrow the cassette tape so that she could listen
to the message again at home.
Two days later she had an unexpected phone call from
Michael. Could he call on her? She invited him to tea and as

34
they ate they discussed the feelings of grief they were still
suffering from, and a little of their past histories. Michael
explained his desire to spread the knowledge of the truth of
life continuing after death. He felt the world needed to know
the truth and so many were unaware of it. She fully agreed
with this and told him of the messages she had already
received from Charlie, and how glad she was to know that
he was all right and happy in his new life. As dusk gathered,
Michael left to drive the eighteen miles home. He felt the
talk had done them both good.
Some of Lily's friends knew that Michael had called
on her and that she was trying to console the man, Brian. A
Mrs Leigh said to her,
'Of course, you could never replace Charlie, could
you?'
All her friends felt that Charlie was unique, one in a
thousand, as indeed he was. Lily's reply was immediate and
genuine. 'Of course not! I've never even thought of any one
else. I'm sure I could never marry again.'
Charlie was there in her thoughts whatever she was
doing. In the garden, the sunshine was bringing all the
beautiful spring flowers out and as she wandered along the
paths, tears filled her eyes as she looked at the wisteria and
magnolia. They were flowering better than ever before. It
had not been many years since she and Charlie had toiled to
plant everything in the empty garden. It seemed so cruel that
he could not see the beauty he had worked so hard to
achieve and somehow Lily could not enjoy the scene, as she
would have done, if they had been together.
Lily's life went on from day to day. Two men 'phoned
her regularly. One obviously concerned for her welfare, the
other still seeking encouragement and re-assurance for
himself.

35
 She was so busy with callers and her many tasks,
some days never getting a proper meal until late in the
evening, that she did not feel particularly lonely until one
sunny Sunday when her friends were away. This day, 2Oth
May, she felt she wanted to get away from the house and
take the dog for a good walk. Her broken arm and shoulder
were still very weak but she thought she could manage the
energetic terrier with her good arm. It was not to be. She had
only gone a short distance when a large Rottweiler dog rose
from under a bench outside a public house and flew at
'Lucky' without warning. Fearing for the little dog, Lily
made a grab for her harness, snatched her up and turned her
back on the Rottweiler, whose paws landed on her right
shoulder. The force of the dog's weight pushed her so that
she toppled off the pavement and fell on to a slowly moving
car.
Luckily the traffic was nose to tail, creeping bit by bit
towards the crossroads or she might have been killed. The
impact jolted her damaged shoulder and left both dog and
owner shocked and frightened. Lily managed to recover
herself and, with tears flowing, she walked on, not knowing
or caring where she was going, trying to stem the tears and
regain control of herself. After a while she got her bearings
and made to walk towards home.
At last she reached the empty house. There was no
one to talk to, no one to help and no one to comfort herself
and the distressed dog. It was then that she realised how
utterly alone she felt. Charlie had been such a pillar of
strength in emergencies. She was still trembling slightly
from the shock as she sat in a chair to recover. The house
seemed so empty and the loneliness overcame her.
A couple of days later, Lily still felt bruised but better
in spirits. Five days later, Michael called with his sister-in-

36
law and they had a pleasant afternoon. This again cheered
her up but ever since the episode with the dog she had been
concerned about certain things. She was frightened to take
'Lucky' out again with only one good arm. She could not go
to see her friends easily and now had no car. Her expenses
were rising beyond her means and, most of all, her
neighbours had commented critically on Michael's kindly
visits, while the man who had broadcast on the radio was
beginning to read more into her sympathy than she had
intended. She talked over her dilemma with a friend who
knew how her life was going. The friend recommended that
she visited a medium, one to whom Lily was unknown. She
named a medium and then, later, sent the money for the
medium's fee.
Lily rang up to make an appointment, and on 1st June
she had a sitting with Grace Gooding, who tape recorded the
'reading' for her to study later on at her leisure. With Lily
sitting opposite to her and without asking her for any
information, the medium began to speak softly,
‘THERE IS A LOSS OF CONFIDENCE CAUSED
BY THE LOSS OF YOUR PARTNER. HE WAS YOUR
ROCK AND YOUR FOUNDATION HAS BEEN SWEPT
AWAY. MENTALLY YOU ARE SUFFERING A LOT OF
ONGOING STRESS AND THIS WILL TAKE A WHILE
TO IMPROVE. THERE IS A PHASE DESTINED HERE,
MATTERS BEYOND YOUR CONTROL - A STRONG
INDICATION OF A MOVE OF HOME. YOU WILL
HAVE TO THINK CAREFULLY AND MAKE A
DECISION IN AUGUST RELATING TO A HAPPENING
IN MARCH OF THE FOLLOWING YEAR, AND THEN
THERE WILL BE A STRAIGHT RUN FOR YOU.’
The gentle voice continued,
'I FEEL I CAN'T BREATHE; THERE'S BEEN A

37
STRUGGLE FOR BREATH AND HE FELT SO TIRED
FIGHTING AGAINST IT. THEN A SENSE OF
UPLIFTMENT, NO SUFFERING, AND HE IS SAYING
HE IS ALL RIGHT AND YOU WILL BE ALSO!’
Lily watched Grace's face intently as her voice
continued,
‘I FEEL A LOVELY WARM GLOW FROM THIS
MAN AND A HEALING ABILITY. DID HE HAVE
SOMETHING WRONG WITH ONE HAND?’
‘Yes.’ Lily replied.
‘HE IS SENDING BIRTHDAY GREETINGS AND
HE SAYS THIS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE YOUR
BIRTHDAY WAS OVERLOOKED BECAUSE OF THE
ACCIDENT. THERE IS A SENSE OF RELIEF NOW;
THERE IS SO MUCH LOVE COMING TO YOU. HE
SAYS THERE WILL BE FEWER TEARS NOW. HE HAS
SEEN YOU PICK UP HIS PHOTOGRAPH EVERY
NIGHT AND SAY 'GOODNIGHT' TO HIM. HE SAYS
THERE WILL BE AN ORCHID GIVEN TO YOU AND
AN OPPORTUNITY TO GROW THEM YOURSELF
AFTER A MOVE. I CAN SEE A TABLE WELL LAID.
YOU WILL BE COOKED FOR SOMETIMES. NEXT
YEAR, YOU WILL BE AMONG HEALERS AGAIN. HE
IS SAYING YOU WERE VERY IMPORTANT TO HIM
AND HE SHARES THE FLOWERS IN THE GARDEN
WITH YOU. DID HE OFTEN TELL YOU HE LOVED
YOU?’
‘Every night,’ Lily replied.
‘HE IS SAYING HE SLIPPED AWAY WITHOUT
SAYING ‘I LOVE YOU!’ 'DID HE HAVE TROUBLE
WITH A FOOT?'
‘YES’
'HE SAYS YOU WILL GET A LETTER FROM ACROSS

38
WATER NEXT YEAR.’
Grace then asked 'Do you have a problem?'
‘Yes’, answered Lily. 'It's about two gentlemen I have
become friendly with. I am being made to feel guilty by
people who knew Charlie. Is it too soon to become friendly
with other men? - And that is all it is!’
Grace's soft voice went on,
‘WELL THERE WILL BE A LOT HAPPENING
VERY QUICKLY: YOU WILL HESITATE UNTIL YOU
HAVE A SIGN. THEN YOU WILL FEEL IT IS RIGHT, I
CAN SEE A SUICIDE AND IT'S RIGHT IN THE
MIDDLE OF HAPPENINGS AT THE MOMENT. AN
INITIAL 'J' IS IMPORTANT. LIFE OPENS UP FOR YOU
IN AUGUST OF NEXT YEAR. DECEMBER WILL SEE
YOU IN A PEACEFUL PLACE WITH JASMINE
COVERING A WALL. THERE'S A LADY WHO WENT
OVER, HAVING COMMITTED SUICIDE BY TAKING A
LOT OF TABLETS. SHE IS SAYING, ‘LOOK AFTER
HIM PLEASE!’
‘YOU WILL HAVE A CHAUFFEUR - NOT MUCH
THIS YEAR BUT MORE NEXT YEAR.' GRACE SAID
THAT ALL THE TIME SHE WAS GIVING LILY THE
READING SHE WAS HEARING LOVELY DEEP
LAUGHTER! LILY REMEMBERED HOW CHARLIE
WAS ALWAYS LAUGHING. HER FATHER HAD SAID,
‘IF HIS HEAD FELL OFF, HE WOULD STILL BE
LAUGHING!’
Grace went on, ‘DOES A REGISTRY OFFICE
MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?’
‘Well I married in one.’ Lily replied.
‘Only it's going to have significance again; very
definitely another marriage, and whatever fears or
conscience you have, you would be wrong in not agreeing.

39
Christmas next year will have seen a far better change for
you. I am getting an impression of travel across water. Does
Italy mean anything to you?’
‘Yes, I have always wanted to go back there again,’ Lily
answered.
‘WELL YOU WILL, WITHIN FIVE YEARS, AND
YOU WILL HAVE A SENSE OF SECURITY FOR THE
FIRST TIME FOR MANY YEARS. I SEE YOU
SURROUNDED BY LOVE AND WARMTH.’
Lily wondered to herself, what on earth could be
coming next? Grace continued,
‘I SEE A MAN, TALLER THAN YOU, WHO WAS
DARK WHEN YOUNG. HE IS SOFTLY SPOKEN BUT
DEFINITE AND HAS BEEN INTERESTED IN CARS.
THERE'S A LOT HAPPENING AROUND YOU. DON'T
HOLD BACK BECAUSE YOU DON'T FEEL CHARLIE
WOULD APPROVE. CHARLIE WANTED THINGS TO
BE RIGHT FOR YOU! THERE IS MUCH KINDNESS
COMING FROM HIM. LOSING HIM, IS A DOOR
THAT'S OPENING UP FOR YOU.’
As her friend drove her home, Lily had much to think
about. She had not even considered marrying again.
Anyway, while Michael was obviously the tall softly spoken
man, she knew from his conversation that he already had
several lady friends who appeared to be very involved with
him. Also, she did not move in his circles, could not go to
the groups and meetings he attended, and had no way of
really getting to know him. The whole thing was too much
like, 'end of the pier' fortune telling. And yet, the evidence
from Charlie seemed correct in every detail, completely
convincing, exactly what she had hoped for. So, also, the
message from the lady who had committed suicide was
highly evidential. How should she respond to her request?

40
She was already looking after him in a way and he was in
fact showing signs of becoming too attached to her. She
tried to dismiss the idea of marriage from her mind as quite
out of the question.
At this season of the year, there was plenty to do in
the garden. She had quantities of fruit to pick and freeze, and
much watering to do in the large sloping garden. She had
many visitors for the garden was very attractive with dozens
of varieties of roses and other plants in bloom.
She heard nothing from Michael during this time but
had many calls from Brian, the other man, who arranged to
come and see her with his daughter. The initial ‘J’ came
back into her mind. The daughter's name was Judy! She had
prepared a good meal and it was a pleasant visit. Before they
departed, Lily was asked if she would go and stay with
Brian and he added, ‘You can do the cooking.’
Although Lily promised to think about it, she could
see many problems. It would be a difficult journey, thirty
miles by public transport, with luggage and a dog, and just
as difficult to return again quickly, if she wanted to do so. If
she considered going it would look as though she was
prepared to develop the friendship further. It was true she
felt very sorry for the man. He couldn't get over his grief and
needed help so desperately. He seemed kindly and had
looked after his family. Certainly his daughter was
charming. Perhaps she could do some good, but her instinct
was telling her, ‘No,’ it’s for the wrong reasons, ‘it's not
wise’.
At this point she had a visit from a man, Geoffrey, she
had known in a business way and who had always seemed
friendly. Now she was on her own, however, his attitude had
changed. He stayed, persistently and she had a real job to get
him to go. His advances were all too obvious and quite

41
uninvited, and she heartily wished him back with his nice
wife. It made her feel worried and vulnerable at being alone
in the world. She missed Michael calling in or 'phoning. It
confirmed her feeling that he had many other interests
beside her.
Sunday July 15th was Charlie's birthday. Lily was
feeling very depressed, she was missing him so much. Then,
unexpectedly, Michael 'phoned and asked if he could bring a
friend to see her on the following afternoon and this cheered
her a little. She was able to go to her Church that evening,
and as she had particularly hoped, she was given a message
from Charlie. The medium, Ann Lambdon, from Exeter,
said:
‘HE SAYS AS QUICKLY AS HE WENT, SO HE
QUICKLY COMES BACK. HE HAD SEEN THE
FLOWERS BY HIS PHOTOGRAPH AND HE THANKS
YOU FOR THEM. YOU MEANT SO MUCH TO HIM. HE
SAYS, 'I'M FINE NOW,’ AND SENDS HIS LOVE!’
This message also cheered her, and she ended the day
in a much better frame of mind than she had started it. The
next day, she prepared for the visit by Michael and his
friend. The friend was a lady she had heard a good deal
about.
She knew that Michael had been entertained at her
very desirable house in an exclusive district, and he had
introduced her to some of his friends. Apparently she was
well known as a sculptor and writer and, in addition, was
very psychic. When they arrived, the lady was pleasant, well
spoken and elegant. She pronounced the tea and cakes to be
delicious and took a great interest in the house and Lily's
craftwork.
All went well until the conversation turned to the fact
that Lily was still handicapped by her damaged arm. This

42
provoked the lady, Angela, to say jokingly but pointedly:
‘You should get yourself a boy friend, as I have
done.’
She saw Michael shoot a glance at Angela, shocked at
this unfeeling remark and what it probably implied.
Obviously he could see that Lily felt put in her place by the
visitor and he was annoyed.
Nothing more was said on the subject. The
atmosphere became strained, for Lily felt that after her
genuine welcome and hospitality, she had been clearly
warned off by this elegant lady. As they departed, she
noticed that the lady took Michael's arm possessively as they
went back to the car. She felt downcast and not a little angry
after they had gone. What was Michael thinking about the
incident she wondered, Was he, as the lady had implied, her
boy friend?
An hour later, the 'phone rang. It was Michael, very
friendly, full of thanks for her kindness. Without referring
directly to the incident, he let it be known that Angela
already had a regular man friend and he was in no way
going to bring her to Mortonhampstead again. He described
a little of how she had been kind to him when he was first
widowed and Lily guessed that perhaps he had been a little
flattered by her interest at that time and pleased to talk to her
about his messages from Nancy.
After this call she was a little mollified but she felt
again that Michael had a wide circle of friends whom she
did not know and the mediums prophesy was very unlikely
to come true.

43
 CHAPTER SEVEN

A PRIVATE READING

In Spiritualist Churches it is arranged, as far as is

possible, that mediums taking part in the services shall be
visitors from other areas. This is to overcome the difficulty
that can arise, both for the medium and the receiver of the
message, when a member of the congregation is known
personally. When dealing with a stranger, the medium
knows that previous knowledge cannot distort the message
coming into his or her mind, and there is the same
reassurance for the receiver. Mediums are rarely paid more
than their actual travelling expenses and, indeed, many
accept that they lose money by their work. A Church may
pay for petrol for a hundred mile round journey but they do
not, indeed often cannot, afford a payment to cover the real
cost of running a car and replacing it in due course.
Some mediums will, however, offer to do 'Private
Readings' and share their fees with the Church. This helps
both sides to meet their expenses and, where the medium is
highly thought of, these private readings are in great
demand.
Some three months earlier, Michael had booked a
Private Reading with a medium from London, Josie Vale
Taylor, well known in Britain and Sweden. On 12th June he
sat opposite her with his tape recorder, in the Healing Room
at the Church. After an opening prayer, the medium said,
‘NANCY IS HERE. SHE SAYS SHE IS VERY
PLEASED THAT MANY OF YOUR FRIENDS ARE
AROUND YOU.’ She says, ‘WHATEVER MAKES HIM
HAPPY, I SHALL BE HAPPY ALSO.’
The medium continued, ‘LATER ON, MICHAEL,

44
I'M GOING TO SAY IT, I FEEL YOU COULD
REMARRY - IN FACT, I'M SURE YOU WILL. I'M
PICKING IT UP, BUT SHE IS ALSO TELLING ME, AND
SHE WOULD BE VERY HAPPY ABOUT IT. SHE DOES
NOT WANT YOU TO FEEL, ‘I WONDER IF NANCY
WOULD WANT ME TO DO IT?’ SHE IS TELLING YOU.
‘DON'T BE IN A HURRY TO DO IT YET! IT WILL
TAKE YOU TWELVE TO EIGHTEEN MONTHS TO
STABILISE YOURSELF. WHATEVER YOU WANT, MY
DARLING, IT WOULD MAKE ME HAPPY.’ SHE ALSO
SAYS, ‘YOU ARE MAKING A VERY GOOD JOB OF
HOUSEKEEPING.’
Michael was thrilled at the ease and directness of this
communication. Nancy had only passed over six months
ago, yet she was communicating so easily. He ventured to
ask a question. ‘Has she met her sister Megan who died
recently?’
The answer came at once, ‘YES’, SHE SAYS. ‘I
HAVE MET HER. AT THE MOMENT, SHE IS RESTING,
BECAUSE SHE NEEDS REST AND RECUPERATION,
SPIRITUAL RECUPERATION.’
The medium went on, 'YOU KNOW I DON'T
THINK MEGAN WAS QUITE PREPARED FOR THE
AFTERLIFE IN THE SAME WAY AS YOUR WIFE
WAS. BECAUSE OF THIS SHE HAS HAD TO BE
TAKEN TO A SPHERE WHERE PEOPLE GO WHO
DON'T UNDERSTAND THE AFTERLIFE. THEY ARE
TAKEN FOR A PERIOD TO GET ADJUSTED, AND TO
BE TAUGHT THAT IT IS ONLY THE PHYSICAL BODY
THAT HAS GONE. NANCY IS SAYING, ‘MEG WAS A
BIT BEWILDERED WHEN SHE CAME OVER,
BECAUSE SHE COULDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY SHE
COULD SEE AND HEAR US. SHE COULDN'T

45
UNDERSTAND WHY SHE WAS SEEING US IN THE
WAY WE WERE, LOOKING SO NORMAL.’
(Michael knew Megan had been a devout, orthodox
Christian).
‘YOUR WIFE SAYS YOU'RE GOING TO BRING
A LOT OF PEOPLE INTO THIS KNOWLEDGE AS A
RESULT OF HER PASSING.’ SHE SAYS, 'THEY ARE
ALREADY SAYING AND QUESTIONING IN THEIR
MINDS, ‘WELL HOW IS IT HE IS TAKING IT SO
MARVELLOUSLY?’
She's saying ‘I WANT TO TALK TO HIM ABOUT
HIS FINANCES. I DON'T WANT HIM TO PUT ALL HIS
EGGS IN ONE BASKET.’ ‘SHE MEANS, YOU NEED TO
PUT IT IN DIFFERENT PLACES, NOT CONFINED TO
ONE PLACE.’
(Michael, 'It's all in one building society’.) ‘SHE WANTS
YOU TO SPLIT IT UP AND KEEP IT IN THREE
PLACES. SHE IS SAYING THERE IS SOMEONE ELSE
IN YOUR HOUSE, A MALE. SHE IS VERY PLEASED
ABOUT THIS BECAUSE SHE KNOWS YOU WILL BE
ABLE TO HELP HIM AND SHE WANTS HIM TO
MAKE THE TOP GRADE.’
(Yes, my grandson Tim is living with me.)
‘She says, ‘THIS IS SUCH A HAPPY OCCASION FOR
ME TO GET THIS CLOSE CONTACT WITH YOU. DO
TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF, GOD BLESS YOU. DON'T
BE SAD BECAUSE I DON'T WANT YOU TO BE SAD.
IF ANYTHING I SHALL BE CLOSER TO YOU NOW
THAN WHEN I WAS ON THE EARTH PLANE.’ ‘She is
withdrawing now,' said the medium, ending a remarkable
sitting,
To Michael the unselfish, loving, nature of Nancy was
perfectly displayed in this message. He took the advice at

46
once about his finances. The question of remarriage was a
much bigger matter, to be considered carefully over a
period. In his experience, second marriages were not always
successful, Younger people were more flexible and able to
adjust to each other, Many older people had become rigid in
their views and habits, unable to adapt to change. On the
other hand marriage could be a great teacher of tolerance
and people who had made one marriage work could
probably succeed with another, Nancy's message certainly
provided him with a new interest in life, but it gave him no
help in deciding who the lady was to be or what she would
be like. The field was wide open.
He thought Nancy's reference to his grandson was
interesting. On 10th December, just after Nancy's death,
Tim, who lived a quarter of a mile away, had asked if he
could come and live with him. As there were some problems
at home at the time, and Tim's adolescent moodiness was not
helping, Michael agreed to have Tim to live with him, and to
help him with schoolwork for his forthcoming examinations.
As his house had thick walls, he also allowed Tim, who was
a drummer, to invite the rest of his group to practice and
rehearse in his living room, on one afternoon a week.
Michael's mind reverted to the marriage question. It
was true, he thought, that he had always liked being married,
He remembered the first few blissful years of their marriage
when, after the separation of war time, simply to be together
was happiness enough. He was used to living with a woman,
caring for a woman, and being cared for. Lately he had
found himself being more and more attracted to women and
several appeared to be attracted to him. Until now he had
thought of himself as an elderly man, now widowed, and
quite on the shelf. He had already noticed, to his surprise,
that a few ladies seemed to think of him as a possible suitor.

47
He sometimes received warm smiles from women he hardly
knew as he passed them in the street. He had never really
liked his own appearance, yet he had overheard someone say
they thought he was good looking. But, if he was to marry,
who was it to be? And, would it be a success?
On June 25th he had a short message from Nancy through
Marian. It said,
‘YOU WILL MARRY WITHIN 18 MONTHS.’
He always told his friends in the meditation group
about Nancy's messages and he received some good-natured
teasing. ‘Can you still remember your courtship routine,
Michael?’ 'How does it feel to have a licence to go courting?
and, 'You'll have to start a social diary,' were a few of the
good-humoured remarks that greeted his latest news.
The remark about his housekeeping particularly
pleased him, knowing that Nancy appreciated his hard work,
and he also needed to keep everything ship-shape as an
example to young Tim who was an enterprising cook but a
reluctant washer-up.
One night, Michael decided to try automatic writing
as a method of communication with the spirit world and,
hopefully, with Nancy. He had watched a friend do it and he
had read of the well known case of Stainton Moses, who,
while a spirit controlled his right hand to write teachings in
perfect English, was able at the same time to use his other
hand to hold the book he was reading or to solve
mathematical puzzles. Michael's attempt failed. Perhaps he
did not have the gift or the patience required. After a
fruitless twenty-five minutes, he wrote on his pad,
'Nancy! I wish I knew what you are doing and what
you are learning'. He left the pad on his desk and went to
make a cup of tea and feed the dog.
He had arranged, the next evening, to go to the home

48
of John and Audrey Wagstaffe, where he and Nancy had
been part of a meditation circle, some years before, His two
friends were waiting for him to arrive to give him a message
received from Nancy by a third member of the old circle
who had passed it to them that morning. The third member
was Janet Horton, who had a hairdressing business. She was
a natural medium and often gave Audrey a message as she
was doing her hair. This message was obviously in answer
to Michael's request of the previous evening. It said,
‘NANCY IS LEARNING TO HELP PEOPLE WHO
COME OVER ADDICTED TO ALCOHOL. THIS IS HER
PRESENT WORK!’
Michael had heard that the receiving and caring for
those who come over from physical life, was a massive on-
going task. With ten thousand people passing over each
week, in England and Wales alone, there was a constant
need for willing helpers to receive and counsel newcomers
from the earthly life. So this was Nancy's present work, or at
least a part of it. His next message from Nancy also came
from Janet Horton, by the same route. It simply said,
'STAY WELL! BE STRONG! YOU HAVE A LOT
OF WORK TO DO YET!'
In spite of constant activity and a pleasant social life
with like-minded friends, Michael still had low days. He still
could not bear to look in his diary at the date 30th
November, when he had entered,’ Nancy passed today at l
a.m.’ Finding a lost shoe or a glove of hers still brought, the
instant, immediate, shock to the heart, the feeling of loss.
Nancy seems to have known this for he had a message from
a Staffordshire medium, Kathy Jones, which said,
‘SHE TAKES YOUR HAND BECAUSE, DURING
HER LAST THREE DAYS, YOU HELD HER HAND
AND THIS MEANT AN AWFUL LOT TO HER AND

49
GAVE HER THE STRENGTH TO GO ON. SHE NOW
TAKES YOUR HAND TO GIVE YOU THE STRENGTH
TO GO ON.’
This message was so evidential and so comforting that
Michael's spirits lifted and he never really sank into
depression again. As they had been quite alone when he laid
on the bed holding her hand; no one but Nancy knew about
it.

50
 CHAPTER EIGHT

UNEXPECTED ATTENTIONS

Lily, who had had so many years of being contentedly

married that romantic attachments to other men had never
even occurred to her, now found herself the object of
amusing but rather worrying attentions. A man living not far
away, a wealthy mysterious gentleman, who looked like
Sherlock Holmes, and was reputed to be a retired diplomat,
brought her presents of apples, picked from his own orchard.
When she went shopping, she passed his large house, and
soon he would emerge, and often seemed to be only a short
distance away, where ever her shopping took her.
Lily's house was a local tourist landmark. The unusual,
ancient, granite cloistered facade, and the boxes of brilliant
red geraniums, made an ideal photograph and, on a sunny
day, there were usually several visitors admiring or
photographing the building. One day, a rather distinguished
looking gentleman admired her flowers and persuaded her to
let him see the house. When he saw over it, and the large
productive garden, he was amazed that she managed it all
single-handed and he took the keenest interest in all her
doings. It emerged that he was an Oxford professor and,
after more than two hours, when Lily said she had work to
do, he invited her to come and stay with him in Oxford. The
offer was politely declined, but Lily wondered with some
amusement, what she could be doing to attract so much
attention.
The unwelcome Geoffrey also called twice, and it was
hard to persuade him to leave, but whatever was causing the
attention, it obviously was not affecting Michael Evans, for
she heard nothing of him for many weeks until, in August,

51
he rang to ask if he could call with his grand daughter,
Kathleen. It was a swelteringly hot day. Kathleen, aged nine,
who had been bathing in a Dartmoor stream, enjoyed the
visit and her tea. Later Lily heard that she had enthused over
both the cooking and the cook when she got home to her
family. Her brothers, of course, had already met both, and
agreed with her.
As far as Lily was concerned, if she was to choose a
partner, it could only be Michael, and as far as she could see
there was very little likelihood of that coming about.
Something told her not to make any advances in his
direction and only to welcome him as a friend if, and when,
he chose to contact her.
It was not until September 9th that she received any
helpful sign. The medium at the Dawlish Church, John
Greene, said to her,
‘CHARLIE IS BESIDE YOU AND HAS BEEN
BESIDE YOU IN THE GARDEN. YOU ARE NOT TO
FEEL SAD AS THE INGREDIENTS ARE BEING
CAREFULLY ASSEMBLED TO MAKE A CAKE AND
THE RESULT WILL BE AS PERFECT AS MANY HE
HAD. CHARLIE HAS HIS LITTLE DOG AND HE HAS
WALKS AMONG THE FLOWERS AND TREES. HE
KNOWS HOW DIFFICULT IT IS, NOT TO FEEL SAD
AND DISTRESSED WHEN SO ALONE, BUT
EVERYTHING IS BEING DONE TO HELP AND HE IS
ALWAYS BY YOUR SIDE.’
This message encouraged Lily as she felt that perhaps
there was a plan for her. She had little time for further
thought as a group of thatchers arrived at the house. They
were under contract to the National Trust to renew the thatch
on the ancient building. The stripping and re-thatching made
a great deal of work for her as she constantly had to clear up

52
the old thatch that blew about, but they were a very pleasant
gang of young men and were very appreciative of the
refreshments she provided. Above all they were company,
and she felt better chatting to them and providing them with
food and drink.
On 16th September, Lily had another message at the
church from a Mrs. Powe from Barnstaple. It said,
‘CHARLIE IS OFTEN WITH YOU IN THE
GARDEN AND WHEN IN KITCHEN LOOKING OUT OF
WINDOW. YOUR LOVE AND ABILITY TO COPE
WITH FLOWERS AND CRAFTS DOES NOT GO
UNNOTICED. MUCH LOVE FROM MANY SPIRIT
FRIENDS. NEXT MAY, THERE WILL BE A SPECIAL
HAPPENING. A LITTLE DOG LOOKS AT YOU WITH
LOVE. ALL WILL BE WELL.’
On September 23rd at Church, Lily had a message
from Marian Bellfield. It said,
‘CHARLIE IS BESIDE YOU. THERE IS
UNPLEASANTNESS AROUND YOU, WHICH WILL
CONTINUE FOR THE TIME BEING. THINGS WILL
GET BETTER. MARCH WILL BE THE TURNING TIME.
YOU WILL RECEIVE TWO OFFERS FROM
GENTLEMEN, ONE OF WHICH YOU WILL HAVE TO
TURN DOWN. IT IS TIME TO MAKE A CAKE AND
CELEBRATE: SOMETHING TO CHEER YOU, AS YOU
CERTAINLY NEED A BRIGHT LIGHT TO CHEER YOU
UP AT PRESENT.’
On October 3rd, rather to Lily's surprise, Michael
phoned to know if he could call, she agreed and he accepted
an offer of lunch. He enjoyed his meal and chatted freely
about his affairs and asked about hers. The thatchers joined
in, and they had an interesting conversation about healing
and spiritual matters.

53
 By October 17th the thatch was still not finished.
Torrential rain fell and penetrated the unfinished thatch,
resulting in floods of water up stairs to be cleared up. The
weather deteriorated and rain fell incessantly. Lily became
very depressed. The old house was always dark but with the
scaffolding outside and the leaden skies above, the gloom
was intensified.
Michael called on October 23rd but as some visitors
called shortly afterwards, he felt he might drive them away,
and departed again, much to Lily's disappointment, as she
knew the visitors, who were from her church, wouldn't stay
long.
The medium at the church on October 28th was
Mr.Bolsworth, and he asked if she was planning to go on a
journey, 'Not that I know of,' she replied.
'WELL, THERE HAS BEEN AN INVITATION
AND IT WILL BE MADE AGAIN IN THE NEAR
FUTURE. IT WILL DO YOU GOOD. DON'T WORRY.
THERE IS MUCH FOR YOU TO DO YET. YOU WOULD
LIKE TO BE ABLE TO GET OUT MORE. THIS WILL
SOON ALTER AND YOU WILL GO BACK INTO WHAT
YOU WANT TO DO BECAUSE YOU HAVE A LOT TO
OFFER. A DECEMBER ANNIVERSARY,’
Several friends had invited Lily to come and stay but
she just did not feel inclined to accept. On Friday 23rd
November, Michael came to lunch again and he and Lily
had a long talk. She had normally shown and sold her
knitting at a Mediaeval Craft Fair at Lustleigh at about this
time and her friends in the craft world wanted her to show
again.
She had two problems, one, that she had no one to
mind her little dog on one of the afternoons of the show, and
two, that she had dreaded seeing all her friends again

54
without Charlie to help, as he had always done. She feared
the tears might flow if they asked about him and revived
memories. Charlie had always been the good-natured centre
of any gathering. She had always been happy to be the quiet,
thoughtful worker. How would she feel without him? It had
not been possible to go to any social gathering to meet
friends since she lost Charlie. The show was a three-day
event but Lily could arrange for someone to look after
'Lucky' for the time she was away with the exception of one
afternoon. That day Michael had business in Okehampton,
and he offered to come on afterwards and mind 'Lucky' for
some hours. With that arranged Lily went ahead with her
plans to have a stall at the show.
The opening day of the show came. Her friends made
it all easy for her. Her potter friend assisted in transporting
all the things to the show, and made sure he was by her side
when everyone came in, so the first meetings went off very
well. Others helped with getting the stall set up, as there was
a lot of work to do with decorating and lighting. Lily
enjoyed every minute of the show, especially talking to old
customers and hearing how the other stallholders had got on
during the year that had passed, when she had not been one
of them. The three days went like lightning.
Michael rang after the show was over, to ask how it
had gone, Lily couldn't wait to tell him how very much she
had enjoyed it and how successful she had been. It was
difficult to know how to repay Michael's kindness and Lily
had thought out a way. If Michael would agree to allow her
to take him out to an evening meal, this would not only be a
way of thanking Michael but it would be a way of giving
them both a much needed treat to cheer themselves before
Christmas. Saturday 15th December was the date agreed and
Michael would arrive at 6.30 to take Lily to the restaurant.

55
 On the day, Lily eagerly awaited Michael's arrival.
She had arranged for her friend, Eunice, to come in as soon
as she could, to mind the little dog. 6.30 came, but no
Michael arrived. 7 p.m. came. Still no Michael! At 7.15, she
phoned his home but there was no answer. What had
happened? An accident perhaps? At 7.30 p.m. he arrived. He
had made a call on the way, been delayed, and had not
realised the importance of leaving on time. A table had been
specially booked at a famous eating-house, some miles
away. In spite of all, they set off in good spirits. Their table
had been taken and they had to wait for a second sitting. The
place was known for its lovely setting, and once the meal
started a beautiful feeling was established between them,
Even the waiter seemed to sense it. After the main course he
said he would leave them to talk before he brought the sweet
course.
Michael asked many questions about her life and the
many varied jobs that she and Charlie had done. He seemed
fascinated by the way she had turned her hand to so many
fields of work in so many different places. Her love of
Switzerland and Italy made him wish she could see them
again, but he knew her present financial position would not
allow this, indeed, he guessed that this evening's meal would
be costing her far more than she could afford.
He told her of his pleasure at receiving a totally
unexpected Christmas card. It was from Nancy. She had
impressed the psychic, Janet Horton, to buy a plain card,
write some verses on it and post it to him for Christmas. The
last two lines of this poem read:
'ON TOMORROW'S DREAMS JUST HANG YOUR
HEART. MY LOVE WILL GUIDE AT NEW YEAR'S
START.’
Lily wondered what that guidance would say, and

56
where it would point him. They finished their coffee at
11pm. and then made their way home over the narrow
twisting moorland roads Not knowing about the delayed
start, the waiting Eunice had expected them back at 10pm.
When they arrived in high spirits, just before midnight she
exclaimed in some exasperation, 'I thought you had eloped'.
She had obviously been anxious, with some reason, as
she had never met this man Lily had gone out with. Lily was
worried, as she knew her critical neighbours had seen their
late arrival home. However, Michael and Eunice were soon
on good terms and found they had mutual friends on the
moor. She had worked as a relief milker at nearly all the
nearby farms on Dartmoor, and Michael and his family had
stayed on holiday for some years at one where she had a
special friend. After a cup of tea and light hearted chat,
Michael departed on the long, twisting, drive back home,
saying he would ring to announce his safe arrival. Eunice
said to Lily,
‘He's a fine man!’
This pleased Lily and stayed in her mind but it was
not until the next morning that she heard how he had got on.
When he arrived home, he was amused to find his fifteen
year-old grandson waiting up for him, saying,
‘Granddad! Where have you been? I've been worried
about you.’
This was the reverse of their usual situation, although
Tim was generally good at ringing up if he was going to be
late. After further pleasant chat and explanations to Tim,
Michael had rolled into bed at about two o'clock, quite
forgetting his promise to ring Lily. He woke with a start at
7 a.m., realised his lapse, and 'phoned to make his apologies
for twice causing her needless anxiety.
Lily had been so happy that she was unprepared for

57
the shock that followed. A neighbour called next, morning to
say that she had seen her coming home late with Michael,
and berated her loudly! How could she behave so, having
had such a wonderful husband and only having lost him a
year ago?
All Lily's joy disappeared on the instant. She should
have known better than to think all was well! She felt angry
because, for the first time, she had really enjoyed herself,
after a year of depression, and it seemed that, in other
peoples' eyes, she should not have done. Her tears started
and would not stop. She felt, more depressed than ever to
feel that, perhaps, she had betrayed Charlie in some way,
something she would have died rather than do. All her life,
she had done everything she could to support him. She
couldn't have loved him more when he was alive. Was there
nothing left for her now but tears and misery?
Lily felt she could not face her birthday, or Christmas,
now, for they were bringing back the tragedy so clearly to
her. Nothing would stop her tears as Christmas came nearer.
She had not heard again from Michael. She knew he was
busy with family coming to stay.
Christmas and birthday cards, carefully chosen, were
arriving every day. Her depression deepened and the tears
still fell. She could not bring herself to put up the cards or
celebrate in any way. Her birthday was spent in tears.
Christmas Eve came and she struggled to pull herself
together. At last Michael 'phoned. He was waiting for his
family from Cardiff to arrive and he would be going away to
Southampton after Christmas, to stay with his sister-in-law
until January 4th.
She felt in danger of getting too fond of Michael and
determined she would not allow herself to show it. There
was a knock on the door and a very good friend, Bob, stood

58
on the doorstep with a Christmas present. Bob was a garage
proprietor and Charlie and he had been the best of friends,
and he had often helped them out with their car. Bob could
see that Lily had been crying. His kindness and sympathy
brought a fresh gush of tears. He said he had felt that Charlie
had wanted her to have the carnations he had brought.
Bob came in and they sat and talked about Charlie and
how she missed him. She told Bob about the friendships that
had developed, especially that with Michael and how she
had been made to feel guilty because of it. Being able to talk
to a wise, staunch friend of Charlie's, who understood,
helped Lily enormously. Here was Charlie's friend, a man
who could really be trusted. The cloud hanging over her
dissipated as Bob put his arm round her shoulder and said,
‘You did all you could for Charlie when he was here.
He wouldn't want you to be unhappy. If a chance of
happiness is offered to you, grab it with both hands.’
Lily felt her depression lifting. Bob could never know
how he had helped her at a time when her world had
crumbled. She knew she could trust his advice and felt an
immediate sense of relief. She got to work. She put up an
array of Christmas lights. She put all her cards; well over a
hundred, in a fine display. Before, she had felt she would be
criticised for such a thing. Now she knew beyond doubt
Charlie would have approved. She cooked herself a
substantial meal for the first time for weeks. She had been
too upset to eat before but now, although not happy, she
knew she would get through.
An early lunch was cooked for Christmas Day, and as
Lily sat down to watch television, the electricity was cut off.
She sat with the friendly glow of her gas fire, thinking back
over her life. The power cut deprived her of electricity for
two whole days, not an unusual event on Dartmoor.

59
 One thing Lily could do in the dark, was touch-type.
She decided to take young Andrew's advice and start the
story of her life. What should she call it? She thought for a
while. So many times she and Charlie had achieved new
jobs, new homes and a comparatively happy life, only to
have it all taken away by forces beyond their control. She
typed the title. ‘Just When Everything Seemed Right.’ As
she typed the scenes of her early life arose before her. She
saw herself as the only, lonely, little child, strictly brought
up in the East End of London, her main companions the
flowers she loved in the back garden and the Jack Russell
dog, 'Gyp' her day- long little friend.
Without lights, there was no point in pulling the
curtains and passers by wondered, as they heard the high
speed tapping of the typewriter keys coming from the old
house, which like the rest of the town was in darkness. She
typed for hours, oblivious of the time, lost in memories of
the past.

60
 CHAPTER NINE

GUIDING MESSAGES

On Thursday evenings, Michael still went to the same

meditation group that he and Nancy had attended. The
medium leading the group, Marian, was a matron at a local
nursing home, a dedicated teacher and a popular clairvoyant.
As Michael was seated, giving his attention to the music
centre he was to switch on, Marian said,
‘NANCY'S OVER THERE. SHE'S PLAYING
CARDS AND SHE HAS DRAWN FOUR QUEENS. NOW
SHE'S ASKING YOU TO PICK ONE OF THEM. ALSO
SHE'S GOT A BEAUTIFUL PINK CRACKER AND
SHE'S GIVING YOU ONE END TO PULL. NOW SHE'S
GIVING YOU ONE OF THE LITTLE SILVER HORSE
SHOES THAT PEOPLE HAVE AT WEDDINGS AND
SHE'S SAYING, ‘GOOD LUCK! GOOD FORTUNE!’’
Marian remarked, with a smile, ‘I think she's giving
you a pretty strong hint!’
To the rest of the group, who had all known and liked
Nancy, and who knew about the previous messages from
her, this seemed a way of expressing Michael's situation,
typical of Nancy's sense of humour. Over the next few
weeks Michael would occasionally stop what he was doing
and think over this little episode. He could think of two or
three possible candidates, but he wondered who were the
four ladies Nancy had in mind, as possible future partners.
Who was the fourth one?
Nancy sounded happy in herself, and seemed to find it
amusing, almost hilarious, that her sober old Michael should
be in a position to court one, or possibly more, of a number
of attractive ladies. The group had already said to him that

61
she seemed so young and gay that he would never keep up
with her when he first went over. Michael wondered, ‘Had
she found anyone? Was she lonely?’ It was so hard to
imagine her new life, in spite of the messages she was
getting through. Certainly within the groups he belonged to,
and those he met in his speaking engagements, there were
quite a number of personable women at whom he might
have set his cap, had he felt ready for this. For the moment
he felt there was safety in numbers and the search to find
and spread the truth was still his driving purpose.
Michael knew quite well that it was no special quality
of his that enabled him to enjoy the company of so many
women. It was simply that available men of sixty-nine with
a house, however small, and an income, however modest,
were very scarce. Many of his male contemporaries had
passed on, leaving charming but lonely widows to battle on
through life on their own. Certainly with two or three ladies
he did feel an affinity, especially with Lily at
Mortonhampstead, and he had an idea that she, at least,
returned the feeling. But marriage! That was a very big
question - to be responsible for another’s happiness! No, for
the moment he was enjoying his newfound self-sufficiency,
his numerous social contacts and, as he saw it, the
unhindered search for the truth about life after death.
Lily had, by now, begun to almost expect a message
from Charlie each time she went to church. Then, on 13th
January, she received an airmail letter from South Africa.
The only person she knew there was Iris Ratsey. Charlie had
taken a Spiritual Correspondence Course called the 'Quest
Course', based on the Alice Bailey books, and his papers had
had to go to Iris for assessment. She opened the letter
carefully. It was from Iris Ratsey. It contained the most
amazing message from Charlie. He had said there would be

62
a letter from overseas in 1991 and here it was.
Apparently, Iris, a medium, held what she called a
'Spirits Party', each New Year's Day and Charlie had come
through. Iris had written out the message, which read,
‘CHARLIE HERE, MRS RATSEY, IF I MAY SEND
A GREETING VIA YOU TO MY EVER FAITHFUL
LILY. IT WAS A TIME OF GREAT SHOCK TO HER
WHEN I CAME OVER HERE AT CHRISTMAS, ‘89. I
FORGET - IT IS NEW YEAR'S DAY TODAY - IS IT
NOT? SO TO HER, AND TO ALL MY MANY FRIENDS,
I SAY GOD BLESS AND KEEP EACH ONE
THROUGHOUT THIS NEW YEAR.
LILY HAS FOUND IT HARD NOT TO GRIEVE
FOR ME, SHE MISSES MY PHYSICAL PRESENCE SO
DEEPLY. WE HAD SO MANY HAPPY YEARS
TOGETHER AND SHE HAS WORKED CEASELESSLY
IN HER EFFORTS TO HELP AND COMFORT ANY
AND ALL, WHO CALLED ON HER TO AID. SHE STILL
STRIVES TO DO THIS BUT SHE MUST GIVE
HERSELF MORE REST.
TELL HER, PLEASE, HOW OFTEN I AM WITH
HER IN THE GARDEN WE BOTH CHERISHED AND
WHICH HAS GIVEN JOY TO SO MANY. ‘GREEN
FINGERS’ GO WITH LOVE OF NATURE'S GROWING
THINGS. ONE DAY I WILL SHOW HER THE
GARDENS HERE, WHERE ALL GROWS
ABUNDANTLY AND HAS NO NEED OF FERTILISERS.
I PLAN OUR HOME IN THOUGHT FOR HER FUTURE
PLEASURE. LILY IS A CREATIVE GENIUS AND IS
SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE EACH CREATION MUST BE
AS PERFECT AS SHE CAN MAKE IT. SHE WILL LOVE
IT ALL SO MUCH, THE PERFECTION SHE WILL FIND
OVER HERE. I MUST GO NOW. I FEAR I HAVE

63
OVERSTEPPED MY TURN IN MY EAGERNESS TO
ASSURE HER OF MY NEARNESS TO HER. MAY GOD
BLESS AND AID EACH ONE OF YOU THROUGHOUT
THE NEW YEAR. CHARLIE.’
Lily read and reread the message, coming so
unexpectedly from overseas. Her spirits soared! She must
tell someone of the news. She would ring Michael. She
dialled the familiar number. Soon the deep pleasant voice
answered, Michael sounded pleased to hear her voice. Then
she explained, and read Iris Ratsey's letter. He sounded
delighted that she should have had such an unexpected and
convincing message. Although he did not say so to her, the
remarks about her creative genius and helpfulness to others,
impressed him deeply. They had put into words what he had
felt himself for some time.
Lily made a suggestion, ‘Shall we go separately to my
church next Sunday and see if we get any guidance about
our future?’
Michael agreed at once. 'Good idea! Let’s arrive
separately, and sit as far apart as possible, and see what
happens.’
On 24th February, Lily arrived and sat as usual, at the
very front of the church. Michael travelled alone and, on
arrival, made his way inconspicuously to the very back. The
medium was a Mrs Dorothy Davies. In a Spiritualist service
there are normally prayers, hymns, a reading, an address or
sermon, and then clairvoyance. Mrs. Davies came directly to
Lily at the start of the clairvoyance.
‘I HAVE TO COME TO YOU FIRST. CHARLIE
NEARLY TOOK ME OVER, HE WAS SO POWERFUL -
I HAD TO SAY, ‘STAND BACK!’ BECAUSE I WASN'T
READY. HE REPLIED, ‘WELL, GO TO LILY FIRST
THEN,’ AND I PROMISED I WOULD. HE SAID,

64
 ‘TELL HER NOT TO WORRY! IT IS ALL AS I
PLANNED!’ HE PLANNED IT AND THOSE IN SPIRIT
ARE STILL PLANNING IT. HE IS STILL DOING HIS
WORK AND HE WANTS ME TO TELL YOU THAT THE
CHANGES THAT ARE COMING UP, YOU ARE TO GO
WITH THEM, NOT HOLD BACK'. HE SAYS,
‘YOU ARE TO GO ALONG WITH THEM! YOU
KNOW YOU HAVE MY BLESSING! YOU KNOW
THAT!’
HE WANTS ME TO TELL YOU WHAT HE'S
DOING IN THE SPIRIT WORLD. HE'S STILL DOING
HIS HEALING, HE HAS A LITTLE GROUP HELPING
HIM AND HE'S DEALING WITH ACCIDENT VICTIMS
THAT COME OVER. HE SAYS, ‘WE ALL SEND OUR
LOVE AND THOUGHTS TO YOU’ and he says,
‘THERE'S TO BE NO MORE GRIEF,’ AND HE
MEANS IT. HE STANDS THERE LIKE THIS, AND HE
SAYS,
‘I MEAN THIS! I'M NOT MUCKING ABOUT, I
MEAN IT! THERE'S TO BE NO MORE GRIEF, NO
MORE TEARS. I'M HAPPY I WANT YOU TO BE
HAPPY! AS THE SUMMER UNFOLDS, SO WILL YOUR
HAPPINESS, BUT PLEASE TAKE CARE OF
YOURSELF - DON'T MISS ANY MORE MEALS!’
‘I don't know why he's saying this,’ said Mrs Davies,
He says. ‘WE'VE GOT TO GET YOU PHYSICALLY
STRONG,’ HE SAYS, ‘I'LL BE WATCHING!’
Mrs Davies continued,
‘You see that's the point. They know what's going on.
That's why you had to come tonight and why I had to come
to pass you this message. I knew Charlie and that was him,
but he got too emotional at the end and I had to cut him off.’
Mrs Davies then continued pointing to Michael in the

65
back row and Lily heard her say,
‘I MUST COME TO YOU, SIR, THERE'S A
SPIRITUAL LIGHT COMING FROM YOU THAT'S
LIGHTING UP THE BACK OF THE CHURCH. YOU'RE
GOING TO HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO, SIR, I'M
SORRY, BUT YOU ARE! ONCE SPIRIT GETS HOLD OF
YOU, YOU KNOW, IT BLOSSOMS OUT. YOU DO A
LOT MENTALLY, SENDING OUT HEALING
THOUGHTS?’
‘Yes’
‘THEY'RE TELLING ME YOU DO, SIR, DO YOU DO
WRITING?’
‘Yes.’
‘YOU'RE GOING TO GET SOME VERSES GIVEN TO
YOU FROM SPIRIT; WILL YOU WATCH OUT FOR
THIS WHEN YOU SIT QUIETLY, HAVE PAPER AND
PENCIL READY.’
After the service, Michael came to the front of the
church and he and Lily thanked Mrs Davies for their
messages. She looked from one to the other and said.
‘Of course! Something told me you were connected.’
It was some time later that Michael showed Lily some
verses that had come to him late at night. He was not sure
whether he had composed them or they had been composed
through him. They were entitled, ‘Where do we go from
here.’

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

The Christian goes to Heaven,

Do the others go to Hell?
Yet the Muslim goes to Paradise,
If he fights the Christian well.

66
The Buddhist re-incarnates,
The Hindu does as well.
The Marxist ceases to exist,
When he hears the final bell.

They all believe their theories,

About the state called death,
They know where they are going,
When they draw their final breath.

They never seem to want to ask

The ones who really know;
The ones who have been through death's gate
And come to tell us so.

They tell us that their world is real,

There's perfect justice there,
They work for love of service,
And there's work for all to share,

Teaching new arrivals,

Expecting justice firm,
There are no harps in Heaven,
Hell has no fires that burn.

Yes-educating earthlings
Is a spirit's first concern,
And when each one has learned the truth,
They have to take their turn,

Explaining to the pious,

Their teachings were not sound,

67
Showing to the scientist,
The truth he never found.

That the earth is just the infant class

And life's a mighty school,
Of never ending learning
Where none will end a fool.

For all are going God-ward,

And all will gain the prize,
For the leaders there are noble,
The teachers there are wise.

They hear with sad compassion

The foolishness and flaws,
That earthly leaders propagate
When they lay down their laws

On matters they don't understand,

Because they've shut the doors.

They've shut the doors that lead from earth,

To the finer world above,
The inspiration's turned away.
With the messages of Love:

But truth is slowly seeping,

The door is now ajar.
One day we'll hush the weeping
That rises near and far,

From those who think their loved ones

Have gone, they know not where,

68
Whose silent tears express their fears,
That they've gone, they know not where.

But then the two worlds will be one,

In a partnership of love,
And THY WILL really WILL be done,
Here, as it is above.

69
 CHAPTER TEN

NO STRINGS ATTACHED

Lily had been particularly pleased with her last

message from Charlie and with the fact that Michael had
been there to hear it. Some time before, knowing how
restricted and depressed Lily had felt, Michael had
suggested to her that they took a holiday together with ‘no
strings attached on either side.’
Lily had not been sure she should go, but now felt
able to agree, knowing that she had Charlie's blessing on
whatever changes in her life lay ahead. She now had the sign
that Grace Gooding had forecast in June of the previous
year.
After several enquiries, Michael found an
advertisement for a two - bedroom, self- catering holiday
bungalow at Boscastle, in Cornwall, somewhere where
neither of them had stayed before. They would both be able
to take their dogs and, guided by Lily's intuition, Michael
booked for the week beginning the 23rd March. On Lily's
insistence, expenses were to be shared equally between
them.
For some time, Michael, who passed the famous
beauty spot 'Steps Bridge' on his way to Lily's house, had
been asking her to come out there for a walk. Each time she
had refused on the grounds that he had already come a long
way and this would mean extra driving for him. Lily had
been well aware of the tired face, Michael presented after
driving from a distance. On 3rd March she had a message
from Charlie at her church. Through John Greene, he said,

‘IT IS NEAR DAFFODIL TIME NOW, WHEN THE

70
FIRST DAFFODILS COME OUT, PLEASE GO TO
‘STEPS BRIDGE.’ WOULD YOU PLEASE PUT SOME
PRIMROSES AND DAFFODILS BY MY PHOTOGRAPH
AND DON'T GET DOWN IN THE DUMPS AGAIN!
PLEASE GO TO ' STEPS BRIDGE!’’
After such a direct message, Lily felt she could no
longer refuse. On 14th March they took their two dogs and
walked along the banks of the River Dart at ‘Steps Bridge.’
The sweet scent of spring was in the air. Everywhere, among
the trees, daffodils were appearing. For the first time Lily
felt Michael put an arm around her waist. As they stood
absorbed in the beauty spread before them, on each side of
the rippling river, she felt him place a soft, sympathetic kiss
on the top of her head. Very gently something had started.
Lily's three friends were very interested in her
ripening friendship with Michael. He was to take the service
at her church the following Sunday, so Lily invited them to
lunch and Margaret agreed to drive Lily, Eunice and Phyllis
so that they could hear him speak. Lily loved cooking and
entertaining and two of the guests were particularly fond of
good food. The lunch was a great success with the friends
trying to outdo each other in sampling the food before them
and at times they were almost hysterical with laughter.
They were a joyful light-hearted group as the car
travelled the eighteen miles to the church. Michael and
Marian, the medium, were already in the room reserved for
speakers when the four arrived, so they took their seats in
the front row.
When it came to the address, Michael spoke on
Judgment, or, as Spiritualists would say, Self-Assessment,
on reaching the next world. He put it in the context of
eternal spiritual progress so that it seemed a helpful, indeed
valuable event in the individual soul's spiritual evolution.

71
 After the service, the friends were introduced to the
tall scholarly figure, who had given such a confident
address. Lily felt the service had gone very well and it had
certainly made a very deep impression on Phyllis. Everyone
was anxious to thank and praise Michael and there was no
doubt he had made a lasting impression. She heard, later,
that both Margaret and Phyllis had written independently to
thank Michael for an uplifting service, something he said
had never happened before.
Lily, however, had other things to think about. She
had to make preparations for a self-catering holiday and her
mind was fully occupied with providing all the necessary
requirements for a stay with a man she did not yet know
very well, and two dogs, in a bungalow she had not yet seen.
Michael was looking forward to the coming holiday
with a rising interest that quite surprised him but also with
an unexpected anxiety. He had told most of his friends that
he was going away to Cornwall for a week with a friend. He
had not specified who he or she might be. He felt he did not
want Lily to be the subject of talk if it did not work out
between them. There was a special reason for this. The
thought of marriage was certainly becoming more attractive
to him in spite of the many complications that it would lead
to.
The trouble was he had just had a message from the
medium, Marian, which seemed to rule out Lily as a
possible wife. Without saying where it came from, Marian
had suddenly announced that he would marry a younger
woman, who was a medium. Michael felt shocked at the
message. He was 70; Lily was 70. She certainly had flashes
of intuition and good insight into people's characters, but she
was not a medium. On the other hand he did know one,
perhaps two, ladies, who fitted the description! Spirits of

72
course, were not infallible. They were simply people who
had passed on to another dimension and some were no wiser
than they had been on earth. Also messages were easily
distorted by passing through the medium's mind, as any
good medium would admit. But supposing it was true! It
would be very unfair to Lily to let her suppose they might
make a life together and then leave her for someone else. He
could tell that she had a strong interest in him and, although
they had agreed that they were going away with ‘no strings
attached,’ he guessed a little of what was in her heart. It
would be another disappointment to add to the many others
she had suffered. It was because of receiving so many blows
from fate that she was going to call her book, ‘Just when
Everything Seemed Right,’ and he did not want to add
another disappointment to the list,
For the moment, he tried to put the thought of the
message aside as he collected together the items of food and
other things he had arranged to bring with him on the
holiday. He had meant to take with him his family
photograph album so that Lily could understand more of his
past life and background. Now he wondered if he should. He
had also planned to take the big book in which he had
recorded all the spirit messages received since 1976, Should
he take it? Suddenly he decided to take them both anyway.
‘Blow the silly message!’ he thought, it was probably
wrong anyway! He felt that in all honesty he musts tell Lily
about the message yet it seemed an unkind thing to do at the
start of a holiday together.
As Michael and 'Bracken,’ his collie dog, travelled the
road to Mortonhampstead, the sun was shining, the trees
were budding and spring flowers lined the road verges. His
spirits rose and he found himself singing as he drove his car
towards the holiday with Lily. As he drew up at the old

73
house in Mortonhampstead, he saw Lily emerge with cases
and boxes all prepared. She obviously cared nothing now for
the thought of neighbours peeping through curtains at the
sight of them loading the cases into the car. Soon they were
packed up and with the Jack Russell on board they set off
As they drove, Michael mentioned the message he had
received from Marian and admitted that he was upset by it.
They discussed the message impersonally, as though it
affected two other people. Had Marian heard it right? Had
she interpreted correctly? Michael said he gave it no great
weight. They dropped the subject and concentrated on
finding the way to Boscastle. The holiday mood gripped
them but at the back of both their minds lay the message
saying ‘Be careful, be cautious!’
When they reached the bungalow they were to share
they were delighted. It stood in the grounds of a large
Georgian house, a peaceful spot surrounded by a lawn and
spring flowers perfumed the air. After taking possession,
arranging their things and making the first cup of tea, they
sat in a sunny lounge congratulating themselves on having
found such a lovely spot. After tea, as the sun was setting,
they took the dogs and set out to explore. They found a path
leading directly to the cliffs. As they walked along the
grassy cliff path, the sea was ablaze with glorious colour. In
the distance they saw a mysterious little white tower
overlooking the sea, farther to the east. As the air started to
chill, they retraced their steps to the bungalow, looking
forward to an evening meal together.
Earlier in the week, Lily had had her radio on very
late at night and had heard Pan pipe music that reminded her
of her life in South America. She had felt so sorry for the
hard lives the native Indians suffered and she admired their
simple hardiness in extreme poverty and she loved the

74
soulful music they played on their Pan Pipes. She had
managed to trace the music and order a cassette in time to
bring it with her. As they started the meal, Michael set the
tape going and Lily was delighted to see that he too loved
the music of the pipes
Early next morning, Lily followed her usual custom
and stole quietly out of the bungalow to take her dog, Lucky,
for a walk along the cliff path. In the distance she saw the
white tower again. It seemed to be looking out to sea as
though on guard. The cliffs were very steep and rocky and
far below the waves crashed against the jagged base.
Everywhere gulls were nesting on every available nook and
cranny on the cliffs while others wheeled incessantly above
her head. She returned to make early morning tea and take a
cup to Michael.
She had wondered whether the dogs would fight but
she need not have worried. Bracken had slept in Michael's
bedroom and Lucky in hers. When she opened Michael's
door, Lucky burst in to smother him with affection, while
Bracken, the ever-hungry one, burst out to see what was
happening in the kitchen.
The table where they breakfasted had a huge window
by it, through which the early morning sun poured in,
covering everything in golden light. They luxuriated in the
warm rays, so welcome after the bitter winter that had made
life so hard for Lily in Mortonhampstead, dealing with
frozen pipes and icy paths. They had a long leisurely
breakfast and each wondered that this intimate, friendly
meal seemed so natural, as if they had been married to each
other instead of to two other people for so many years. It just
seemed to be right.
Michael, who had read widely about reincarnation,
wondered to himself if they could ever have had lives

75
together in the past. They decided that after breakfast they
would explore farther along the cliffs and see if they could
reach the white tower. They set out but they had not realised
what a climb they had undertaken. The rolling hills had been
cut away by the sea so that the cliff path climbed and
descended almost to sea level, then climbed and descended
again while it wound its way round narrow inlets that
reminded them of Norwegian fiords. At last the tower was
ahead and they struggled up the steep incline to sit
exhausted on the concrete base. Presently they recovered
and examined the tower from all sides. It seemed almost too
artistic to be constructed merely for practical use and they
later learned it was, indeed, built as a charming 'folly'. After
some years the coastguards had used it and now it was
boarded up and empty.
On their return, Lily got the lunch. Michael asked her
how she had become such an expert cook. The reply was
unexpected. She said that her mother was such a poor cook
that at seven years old she realised that if she wanted decent
food she would have to learn to cook it herself, and now
cooking was one of her main interests.
Michael had always tended to jump up after a meal
and start some job or other. Lily now persuaded him to sit
and rest after the meal, a thing he had never done. Taking an
unaccustomed rest, Michael picked up a book Lily had
brought with her and was immediately interested. It was
called ‘Centenarians of the Andes’, and the author, Dr
Davies, described how the inhabitants of certain areas in
Ecuador had very long and vigorous lives. These people
lived above 5,000 feet in the Andes Mountains and they
showed few signs of the decrepitude that we, in the west,
associate with old age. Dr Davies had traced and studied
men as old as 140 who were still agile and clear-headed,

76
while a woman he met, of 104, moved like a young woman
of 20. He carefully studied everything about their lives and
found them quite free from heart disease, cancer and many
other diseases of the western world. They ate fruits, herbs
and roots instead of modern processed foods, and very little
meat. These people maintained their ability to cultivate their
small- holdings almost to the end of their lives. They had
herbs, which they said promoted fertility and women of
sixty had given birth, while men of over a hundred had
fathered children. Dr. Davies also described people of the
Abkasion tribe, living in the Caucasus Mountains of
southern Russia, who were also very long-lived. One man
was 168 and had a brother who had died at 134. He could
remember clearly, events that happened 150 years before.
The conclusion seemed to be that natural foods, mountain
life and regular work played an important part in the long
and healthy lives of these peoples.
Michael mused over the book. Were cancer and heart
disease perhaps caused by western food? He felt he still had
a great deal to do in life and even another ten or fifteen years
would give him the chance to do it. Then there was the sex
question. He and Nancy had had a happy relationship in this
way for over 40 years. It had always seemed entirely natural,
as basic to their marriage as their spiritual partnership,
Would he ever know that kind of physical closeness again?
He remembered how Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of
Christian Science, had changed her point of view on this
after her death. She had returned through the medium Ursula
Roberts to say that she could now see the seven power
centres in man that the Hindus call the chakras. From the
sexual centre at the base of the spine, to the spiritual centre
at the top of the head, she now said all should be active and
in balance for a good healthy life, depending of course on

77
circumstances and situations. This seemed to argue against
the Roman Catholic rule of abstinence for priests.
Lily was moving. He could hear her washing up.
What should they do? He went out to ask her. It was Sunday
and they both had the same idea. They would like to go to a
Spiritualist service in a new place. Michael had taken part in
a service at Bude, ten miles away, some while before. He
had been driven there by a medium and thought he could
find the little church again. They set off on a lovely sunny
afternoon. Now and again, on their left, they saw a glimpse
of the sea with the waves sparkling in the sunshine. They
drove into Bude and entered the one-way traffic system. The
last time Michael had been here as a passenger, he had not
paid attention to the route. As they came round the one-way
circuit for the second time he had to confess himself unable
to find the church. He stopped and asked in the Police
Station. They could not help. With a sense of panic
developing because time was now very short, Michael
decided to ring the medium, Marian, in Devon. The number
was engaged and minutes ticked away. At last he got
through to her and she laughed at him. It was held in a hall
he had already passed twice. They arrived outside at 6.29,
the service started at 6.30.
Lily jumped out of the car without saying a parting
word to the dogs and giving them the usual chocolate drops,
leaving Michael to lock up the car. He caught up with her to
see her being embraced by a large gentleman at the door
who said, ‘Welcome young lady,’ as though she was
expected. They took their seats, almost the only ones vacant,
and the service began. The medium was Michael Packer
from South Devon. He had a very lively uplifting manner
and when he came to the clairvoyance, he went straight to
Michael. After describing Nancy, he said,

78
 ‘SHE IS GENTLE BUT STRONG. SHE COULD
TAKE ME OVER. SHE IS VERY EXPRESSIVE,
PERSUADING YOU TO MOVE ON. SHE SAYS ‘CAN’T
YOU SORT IT OUT?’ SHE IS PERSUADING YOU TO
SEE THINGS FROM A NEW PERSPECTIVE AND GET
A MOVE ON.’
The medium came to Lily with the last message of the
evening. After a brief message from Charlie, he relayed a
message from her aunt Emily, which said,
‘EMILY COMES CLOSE. A CHANGE IN WHERE
YOU ARE LIVING. BE POSITIVE WITH SPIRIT'S
HELP. CONSIDER COMMITMENT. DON'T TURN
BACK. IT'LL WORK OUT FINE.’
As they left the service, the chairman made a bee -
line for Lily to say a very special farewell, which, seemed
strange as other people were departing without such
particular attention.
‘Young lady’, he said, which she certainly was not,
‘you will come to Bude Church again. I see much happiness
ahead for you. I can see a triangle over a sphere above your
head,’ and he made a triangle with his arms over his own
head as illustration. Another hug, another kiss and a warm
but restrained goodbye to Michael followed.
As they drove out of Bude, to find the coast road to
Boscastle, they felt they had had a very surprising evening.
The pattern of a triangle over a sphere was the logo on the
front of the pamphlet Michael had published about his
experiences when taught by a Tibetan teacher. There was no
way the Chairman could have known this. On the way to
Boscastle, they had a good deal to think about. Michael was
sure that the message had come from Nancy and he was
pleased she had known of their plans and spoken through
Michael Packer. He was not quite clear as to what the

79
message meant. It was probably an encouragement to follow
his instinct and suggest a closer friendship, and perhaps
partnership, with Lily, but it made no reference to the other
message about a younger psychic.
Lily's message was all too clear to her. Her aunt, who
had had an interest in Spiritualism, was encouraging her to
do as Charlie had suggested and commit herself to a
partnership with Michael. It reinforced the two previous
messages. But what did he think? She remembered a letter
he had written to her in which he said-
‘You have no competitors in my affection, but if I
promise more than I can perform, it may lead to unhappiness
later, which is the last thing I want. Let us get to know one
another better gradually and see how it goes!’
Then there was the other awkward message about a
younger woman. Obviously Michael was not ready and did
not want to commit himself yet. Well, she only wanted him
if he was sure she was the one, as she was sure in her own
mind that he was the one for her, and he must make up his
own mind without any pressure from her.
The following day they went to Tintagel and explored
the massive rock formation with its caves at the base,
washed by the ocean. The sun came out and early season
visitors were climbing the steep paths and gazing out to sea
over the ramparts of what legend said was King Arthur's
castle. After returning for lunch at the bungalow they sat
quietly for a time while Michael worked on an article for a
magazine his church produced. Later they explored the
picturesque Boscastle harbour, a steep sided inlet providing
one of the few shelters for boats on this harsh, rocky coast.
By the harbour, were cafe's and shops and they bought
provisions Lily wanted, as they had invited some guests to
come to lunch the following day. Lily remarked, and

80
Michael agreed, that it seemed entirely natural for them to
be shopping together, exploring the village and preparing for
guests, as though they had always known one another.
The guests were to be Brian, the bereaved man Lily
had heard on the radio and 'Judy' his daughter. Lily worked
hard preparing the lunch. She wanted the meeting to be a
success and hoped that they would give some
encouragement or enlightenment to Brian who was sunk in
grief and still visited his wife's grave with flowers every day.
Also in meeting Michael he would realise that Lily was not
as alone as he might have thought.
The couple arrived and during coffee Brian bluntly
asked Michael, 'What are you doing in Boscastle?' ‘Oh, I felt
Lily and I needed a break and we are visiting people near
here.’
A little later on the question was repeated, 'But what
are you doing here?’ with emphasis on the ‘you’. Any
answer was avoided by a call to lunch and general
conversation. The daughter, Judy was a very attractive,
intelligent girl, very much concerned for her father's welfare,
and she, too, seemed anxious to probe Michael's future
intentions. Michael felt all this was a little unfair when they
were, after all, guests eating a splendid lunch, but he bore it
with good grace.
. When he put the Pan Pipes tape on, as they had
coffee, Brian dismissed it rather curtly, saying, 'I prefer my
music straight'. Michael switched it off again. Brian seemed
as if he was easily irritated, by things he did not like. About
an hour after lunch, the guests prepared to depart after
looking over the bungalow and garden, Michael
accompanied Judy out to the car but Brian hung back in the
kitchen with Lily, looking out of the window, hesitating, as
though he had something he very much wanted to say but

81
could not quite say it. After a minute or two he reluctantly
made his way out to the car and they departed, Michael
watched them go, feeling sorry for the man who, even
though he had a fond daughter, seemed locked into
loneliness self-pity and grief.
After clearing up, Michael and Lily took the dogs for
their favourite walk along the cliff tops. The sun shone on
the sea. The waves broke against the rocks far below. The
dogs hunted strange scents in a fever of excitement until the
sun sank, the air cooled and they turned for home. After tea
they watched television. They both enjoyed an old classic
comedy and then a programme on orchids, Lily's special
interest.
Breakfasting again, in the glorious early morning sun,
they both felt the peace and contentment of this period
together, away from telephones, post and regular visitors.
They seemed to exist in an aura of peace.
The following days went all too quickly and Saturday,
when they must depart, was looming nearer. The next day
they visited Delabole, the largest slate quarry in the world,
Port Isaac and the seaside village of Rock. They lunched
out, and in the evening they talked about their past lives and
experiences. They did not venture into discussing the future.
Michael described how, in 1990, he had started a little
business called Amazing Spiritualist Audio Tapes. It had
come about almost by accident. He had been asked to take
an old friend to a well-known healer in Okehampton, some
20 miles away. The friend, a fellow teacher, had had a heart
attack while lying on a beach in the South of France. His
holiday insurance had brought him home by Air Ambulance
but the end result had been paralysis of his left side,
especially the arm and leg.
The friend, Bill, remembered how Michael had been

82
healed of his injured spine and hoped for a similar success,
Michael had not been too hopeful, as the damage was now
many months old, but he willingly drove Bill to the healer's
home and helped him into the healing room. The healer, Ted
Cornish was well known and always seemed to have patients
from near and far, waiting in the corridor for their
appointment with him.
Once inside, Ted immediately began giving healing to
Bill but gave most of his attention to Michael. After asking
him many questions about the Spiritualist Church, he said
'Have you seen my tapes?' which Michael had not.
'They're the most amazing recordings of communications
through a medium you have ever heard’, said Ted, 'you must
see them before you go.
Michael described how, ignoring the waiting patients,
Ted took him into a large lounge and opened a glass topped
mahogany cabinet with many audiotapes displayed in rows.
He explained that a small Spiritualist circle in Sidmouth had
received over a hundred, 'Messages to Mankind', transmitted
from the Spirit World by a representative group of those
who had passed over. The whole operation had been
supervised by members of the spiritual, ‘White
Brotherhood’ and the speakers included housewives, bank
managers and doctors, as well as well-known people such as
Florence Nightingale, King George VI and Lord
Mountbatten. Inclined to be suspicious, it seemed to Michael
unlikely that the tapes were genuine communications. It had
been known for foolish spirits to claim to be famous people
in order to gain the attention of listeners. Yet, what if they
were genuine? Should not this be investigated? He asked to
borrow four tapes and promised to return them on his next
visit with Bill.
When he got home he spent many hours, listening to

83
the tapes over and over again. The personalities described
their lives on earth, their passing, or death, and their
experiences in what they insisted was called the, ‘Etheric
World.’ The next time he took Bill for healing, he returned
the four tapes and borrowed another four. These, too, he
assessed again and again. He became more and more
impressed with them and the idea came to him that they
should be marketed, so that they were made available to the
public at large. When he listened to a tape made by the
former King George VI, he was more than interested to hear
the King's voice say to the members of the Sidmouth circle,
'Don't worry about distributing the tapes, we will
arrange for someone to do this.’
Michael asked if he could take on distributing the
tapes, Ted agreed at once. There was no copyright claimed
and the medium wanted no payment. He simply wanted the
messages to go out to whoever wished to hear them. Ted
mentioned that others had offered to market the tapes for
him but until now he had had an inner feeling which said,
'No. Wait!' Now he felt the message was ‘Yes’, and so he
allowed Michael to make his own master tapes from which
to make copies for sale.
After making a set of master tapes, Michael had
placed copies in his local church and then set about
advertising them in 'Psychic World.’ To save tax problems
he had decided to run the business as a church activity with
profits going to the church. In this way, the church
accountant could deal with the income under charity law.
Lily now understood why Michael so often said; 'I
must deal with my post before I come out.’ She knew he had
bought a word processor to print lists of tapes and had had
many orders, some from overseas.
Michael asked many questions about her life and

84
especially about Charlie. Their life together had been one of
considerable hardship and almost endless hard work, but
Lily loved to talk about Charlie and his boundless energy
and kindness to one and all. He seemed to have struck a
chord in the hearts of hundreds. The poor, the frail, the
handicapped and the suffering had been his interest and
concern. With his humour, his kindness, his first-aid
knowledge and his healing gift, he had had friends
everywhere. Often he had come home to her and said,
'Lily, could you make a cake for old Mrs. 'X,' or ‘Mr.
'Y'?’ As he had developed as a spiritual healer he had had
some remarkable successes in apparently hopeless cases and
also in training other healers. Lily had been perfectly happy
to do the planning, organising and cooking so that he could
do his work. She accepted that half the lonely old ladies in
the town felt that they had a part share in Charlie.
After he died, she found a beautiful watch he had
bought for her as a present but had never given to her in the
upset of her accident, followed by his sudden death. He had
written a note with it she would never forget. It said, 'With
all my love. You are the wind beneath my wings! Charlie.’
The next day, Michael and Lily explored Boscastle
and discovered a delightful wooded walk by the side of the
River Valency. They came to the cottage of the National
Trust Warden and spent a pleasant half hour listening to his
stories of the locality and its visitors. They knew that
Thomas Hardy, the novelist, had visited Boscastle, and the
Warden told them of some disputes among the members of
the Thomas Hardy Society when they visited the area.
Lily had an artist friend, who, when she said she was
going to Boscastle, had said, with a twinkle in his eye,
'Are you going to visit Paradise while you're there?’
Lily had thought he was joking as it must have seemed

85
surprising that she was going away with Michael whom her
friends had known so little about. She had laughed but
wondered if there was such a place. On a sketch map they
had of the district, they saw a place named Paradise. In their
euphoric state they felt they must visit this place but the
directions were vague and they failed to find it.
That evening Michael asked directly if Lily would
consider re-marriage, if asked, and he outlined his financial
resources, income and general situation. Lily remained
friendly but firmly aloof. None of the financial details
interested her and she did not take them in. She went so far
as to say, 'Yes, if I was asked I would consider it,' but she
refused to go further. In this she was resolute. There were
several other women in the field, she knew, and unless he
was absolutely sure she was the only one for him, she would
not allow herself to give way to her feelings and so put
pressure on him. He must make his own free choice
otherwise unhappiness could be ahead for them both.
On Friday morning they lingered over the sunny
breakfast table, realising that tomorrow's meal would be a
hasty one as they would have to pack, clear up and settle
accounts by 10 o'clock in the morning. After a last walk on
the cliff path in sunny but windy weather, Michael offered to
cook lunch. He felt Lily had done all the cooking and, after
all, she was on holiday as well. As the stove was ultra
modern and unfamiliar, he worked carefully, and slowly and
lunch was rather late but Lily waited patiently. It was a long
time since anyone had cooked for her and she was quite
happy, thinking to herself that another prophecy was coming
true.
In the afternoon they visited Bodmin Moor and gave
the dogs a good walk before returning for tea at the
bungalow. After tea they set out to find Paradise. According

86
to the bungalow's proprietors, it was not far, just a few
turnings to right and left. For some time they searched tracks
and lanes without success, then, suddenly, just as the sun
was setting, they found it, marked officially by a notice
board saying, PARADISE. It was the most tranquil spot by
the side of a charming old house. A stream trickled down
towards them, flanked on each side by grassy banks, covered
with primroses and daffodils. The fresh green branches of
weeping willows hung over the stream as it tumbled over its
rocky bed with a gentle gurgle. The whole scene was lit by a
gorgeous sunset, which gave it an unearthly beauty.
Lily was a practiced photographer. They both had
cameras with them. As they tried to capture the scene, each
camera in turn gave a depressing whir, announcing that its
film was finished. They stood side by side, drinking in the
view until darkness fell, Lily asked laughingly,
'Do you know the way back?' for they had already lost
their way several times.
'Oh yes!' came the confident reply.
They started back with the two dogs. Michael, who was now
looking in vain for clues to the way back, hoped the dogs
would remember the route. They at least appeared confident
and strained forward on their leads. After some time the road
grew narrower and sloped steeply uphill. In the gathering
dusk they could make out hedges and farm gates and heard
the bleating of sheep. All this was unfamiliar. Were they lost
again? Still the dogs pressed forward but Michael now
admitted he had gone astray, called a halt and they began to
retrace their steps.
Totally bewildered, now, they wandered for what
seemed ages before a familiar main road appeared and they
managed to reach the bungalow again, tired but still quite
happy in spite of their meanderings in the pitch dark.

87
Everything they did seemed to bring them closer and they
both felt the increasing attraction that was drawing them
together, in spite of their 'no strings' agreement.
They were hungry and, as Lily prepared supper in the
small kitchen, Michael helped her and they chatted about
their adventures. Lily felt they were now very close and for
her, Paradise had left her with a treasured memory she
would always remember. As they lingered over the meal she
hoped that Michael would say he had made up his mind
before the evening was over.
They did some packing and then reminisced as they
had their last supper drink but still Michael said nothing.
Lily dreaded the thought of going home to an empty house
on an Easter Saturday, Was it really to be a case of 'Paradise
Lost?’
Michael too, thought he ought to say something but
still felt he must not speak until he was sure beyond all
doubt. This holiday euphoria, which so encompassed them,
did not guarantee that a permanent partnership was right for
them both. On the other hand, they were so naturally close
that it seemed ridiculous to part and go to separate
bedrooms. As they both fetched glasses of water from the
kitchen, in their nightclothes, he hesitated. Lily looked a
little aloof and after all it would not be fair until he was
absolutely sure a marriage would be a success for them both.
It was many months before he found out what her feelings
had been at that moment.
On the drive home next day, Lily heard Michael
humming, ‘I’ve grown accustomed to her face,’ from the
show ‘My Fair Lady.’ She wondered if in the days to come
with his busy life, he would miss her, as she knew she would
miss him.
Their thoughts as they drove homewards were partly

88
of the wonderful companionable week that was ending and
partly of what lay ahead. Michael's mind was busy with
thoughts of appointments and duties that he had gladly
shelved for a week. He now looked forward with enthusiasm
to his various tasks. How would he find his house he
wondered, after a week in his grandson's care, not to
mention the care of his friends in the small pop group he
belonged to who, no doubt, would have been practising in
the living room during his absence.
Again and again the message from Marian came to his
mind; 'To marry a psychic'. A younger woman.’ Could it be
true? Who knew what the future held, but if it were true,
how unfair to Lily; Lily of the honest, loving and vulnerable
heart.

89
 CHAPTER ELEVEN

AFTER THE HOLIDAY

Lily's Easter weekend was lonely as she tackled her

garden but she did have one visitor. The mysterious
gentleman from the big house, who often followed her
about, called with a present of more apples. He caught the
aroma of an apple pie that was cooking at the time and
sniffed appreciatively. He said he hoped she could use what
he had brought as he was going away on holiday. To be
polite she enquired where he was going and he replied,
‘I've a villa in Marbella where I'm going for a few
weeks. I'd be glad to lend it to you if you would care to take
a holiday there after I return!’
Lily politely declined the generous offer. She was
amused that this beautifully spoken, well-educated man
should obviously look upon her with favour, she who had
left school at 14 and educated herself in the hard school of
life. However her thoughts did no stay with him, they were
centred elsewhere, as were the thoughts of her friends.
Lily's friends were too polite to ask her very personal
questions about the holiday, but she noticed there was an air
of expectancy about them as to what she might volunteer. It
was an expectancy she did not, could not satisfy. What had
happened on the holiday? Had she and Michael formed a
lasting bond? She could not tell.
Michael appeared to act in the same friendly way as
before they went away. He 'phoned most evenings and they
exchanged details of what they had been doing but he said
nothing about their having a future together.
Alice had two friends who she knew had similar
interests to Michael. They lived at Torpoint, on the west of

90
Plymouth, and she suggested they went to see them. Both
had psychic gifts and were students of the spiritual life and
devoted themselves to healing as their form of service.
Michael agreed to pick her and Lucky up and drive
over Dartmoor to meet these friends for lunch. They stopped
at a point, high up on the moor, to exercise the dogs. As they
walked in the cool, clear air, Michael saw something shining
on the ground. He picked it up, it was a silver Parker
fountain pen, half buried in the peat, something he needed as
his own had just started to leak. He could see no hope of
returning it to its owner, there was no one in sight for miles,
so he put it in his pocket. It seemed odd to find it there just
when he needed one.
After a lengthy wait to cross on the Torpoint Ferry,
they arrived in good time to meet Lily’s friends, John and
Anne. The dogs behaved admirably for once, and they all sat
down to an excellent lunch. The conversation soon flowed
and Michael found that John was a knowledgeable student
of the Tibetan's works.
With lunch over, the conversation turned to house
prices. Michael liked the look of a nearby house with a
mature garden and was surprised to be told that house prices
here, even with a view of Plymouth Sound, were much more
reasonable than he expected. John and Anne made it clear
that they would love to have them as neighbours. They
explained that house prices were lower because Torpoint
was cut off from Plymouth by the Sound and had to be
reached by the ferry.
When a patient, called for healing, Michael and Lily
took the dogs for a walk by the Sound, looking at houses for
sale on one side and the busy scene of boats and Royal Navy
ships on the other. Michael realised that John and Anne had
assumed that he and Lily might be setting up home together.

91
This was natural enough, as they had heard of some of the
messages Nancy and Charlie had sent, mentioning marriage
and commitment.
With one part of his mind Michael spoke of the view
and controlled the dogs, as they walked. With another he
thought, 'But this is all too early!’ Nancy had advised him to
marry in 12 to 18 months time when he had stabilized
himself. Could he be sure he could promise life-long love to
this lady by his side? He did not really rate the forecast
about the younger psychic very highly but, as he had said in
one of his few letters to Lily, they must let time pass and see
if admiration and friendship would naturally ripen into love.
Lily's good qualities were clear, she was unselfish, indeed
generous to a fault; she was tactful, honest and skilled in
many ways, They got on well together and real love might
well grow between them but it must not be rushed. It was
just very satisfactory that things had gone as well as they
had, so far.
As they drove back across Dartmoor, a sunset tinted
the moor with a strange ruddy glow that spread beauty over
the rocks and heather. Looking at Lily's face he noticed the
set of her mouth. It was a look of patient, determined
endurance, a legacy of difficulties faced and overcome. He
longed to replace it with a look of contentment, a look that
said she was no longer alone and had found love and
security again.
Lily had always been a campaigner. When she and
Charlie had bought a mobile home on a charming site during
a dry summer, and the following winter's rain turned the area
into a swamp, with sewage emerging from the drains, the
others on the site had feared to take action because the site
owners simply ejected trouble makers.
'You'll never beat the site owners,’ they said.

92
 She had sought out politicians, and would-be
politicians, and taken the case to the press and television, so
that after many letters and visits to all and sundry, powerful
figures took an interest in the subject, a change was
proposed in the law, and the foundation for a new Mobile
Homes Act was made. The Act came into effect in 1983,
granting greater security to tenants and greater
responsibilities to site owners.
At the moment, she was battling with the local Health
Authority, seeking help for a very handicapped family that
Charlie had always assisted. She interested Michael in the
case and he willingly wrote letters and engaged the help of
friends to secure proper provision for the mother, who was
at the end of her tether with many problems. She had shown
Michael the transcript of a sitting she had had with a
medium when the battle at the mobile home site was at its
height and victory seemed unlikely. The medium had
described the swamped site and said,
‘THERE ARE LEGAL MATTERS INVOLVED,
DON'T GIVE IN. THE MATTER WILL BE CONCLUDED
TO BENEFIT MANY OTHERS. DON'T WORRY ABOUT
LEGAL FEES, THESE WILL BE TAKEN CARE OF.’
She then went on to describe the house at
Mortonhampstead in detail, a house that Charlie and Lily
were to move to in the future, but of which, at the time, they
had no knowledge at all. That the forecast had come exactly
true made her think more seriously about the recent forecasts
of marriage.
Michael was busy with engagements on most days but
he phoned regularly and called when he could, usually on
Saturday. Lily knew his regular meetings now and knew at
least the names of the friends he met with and what the
meetings were about. On Mondays a group came to his

93
house for meditation as they had done for years. On Tuesday
evenings he sat with a blind man. On Wednesday evenings
he meditated with two old friends, as he had done with
Nancy.
On Thursday afternoons he had been invited by two
psychics to sit as part of a group, and had become involved,
quite unexpectedly, in 'rescue work'. The mediums
concerned shunned publicity, but he knew that a spirit
control had spoken through them and asked their help in
dealing with victims of the Gulf War who were earthbound.
The mediums took it in turn to go into trance, so that airmen
and soldiers who had passed over, and were temporarily
bewildered, could speak through them, allowing Michael
and others to talk to them and advise them to 'look for the
light’ and 'ask for help', whereupon they would be able to
see the spirit helpers who would guide and assist them.
She did not fully understand why it was necessary or
how it was done, but she knew he regarded it as a privilege
and a great responsibility. She had read that, after the last
war, Air Chief Marshall Lord Dowding had described,
'rescue’ circles’, similarly helping earth bound RAF aircrew
to progress to their proper sphere in the spirit world.
On Thursday evenings he met with friends in a
meditation circle run by Marian Bellfield. Here she knew
Nancy occasionally popped in with a message. On Friday he
often called on a young American medium and her husband
and baby daughter, and on Saturday he was free to come and
see her. On Sundays he often took a church service or
attended one, followed once a month by a committee
meeting, which went on to about 11 p.m. In addition he gave
talks to about twenty interested groups, once or twice a year,
in neighbouring counties, and attended meetings, chairing
the Board of Governors of a school.

94
 Would she ever see him, if it came about that they
became partners, she wondered? At least she thought, he
was usually home in the day time and, after all she could go
with him to some of the things if it ever came about, She
still had no idea what her future held after all their talks
together.
Lily had always grown geraniums in troughs under
the arches on the granite wall in front of the house; they
made a vivid contrast to the grey stone and had warm
commendation from the local Britain in Bloom Committee.
She needed new young plants from a grower near to
Michael's home and he offered to drive her there, calling in
at his house on the way.
At first sight she thought the house where he lived
was small and rather dark. As with many local houses, the
walled garden was on the other side of the road and while it
had a good view of the River Exe and the boats, she felt it
would be very inconvenient. On their return to
Mortonhampstead with the young plants, Michael accepted
an offer to stay the night. He slept in the big bedroom and
when he woke, watched through the window, the sun rise
over the moor on a beautiful spring morning.
Lily had had two messages from Charlie relayed to
her recently. One came from John at Torpoint, after their
visit. Charlie actually appeared briefly to her old friend and
said,
'ALL GOES WELL, ALL IS WELL!’ The second
message came from a medium at Dawlish Church and said
to her,
'CHARLIE IS NOW FINE AND HAS FOUND
PEACE AND HAPPINESS AS YOU HAVE DONE. HE
CAN SEE A COTTAGE AND LOVELY GARDEN
WHERE THERE WILL BE MUCH HAPPINESS.’

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 Michael came for the weekend on 17th April and
again on 1st and 2nd of May when Lily was again knitting
hard preparing for a Craft Fair to be held in the town. The
following Wednesday her healer friend Margaret came to
stay the night, and help her with her stall on the following
day. After a busy morning on her stall, the pressure eased a
little during the afternoon and Lily noticed a woman
watching her as though intrigued. After a while, she
approached her with tears in her eyes and said,
‘IT IS SO STRANGE TO SEE SUCH A SPIRITUAL
LIGHT, ARE YOU A MEDIUM?’’
On her answering 'No,' she said,
‘THIS INVOLVES TWO PEOPLE: CALMNESS
FROM A GENTLEMAN, A QUIET SPIRITUAL MAN,
WITH MUCH HAPPENING WORLD WIDE IN THE
FUTURE. I CAN SEE A GREAT SPIRITUAL
PRESENCE! DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING BELONGING
TO THIS MAN?’
On being shown a photograph of Michael, which was
all Lily had, she said,
'THIS CONFIRMS EVERYTHING I HAVE SAID.’
The lady, obviously a medium, gave her a sweet smile
and shook her hand, saying as she departed,
‘IT'S SO UNUSUAL TO SEE SUCH A SPIRITUAL
LIGHT.’
As the lady disappeared into the crowd Lily realised
she should have asked her name but customers appeared and
she had to attend to them. Margaret, her friend, joined her at
this point. Presently the distinguished mystery man appeared
at Lily's stall and exchanged a few words. As he left,
Margaret realised he was the admirer she had heard about.
She seemed so taken with his eligibility and the fact that
Lily did not require him, that she let out a most unladylike

96
sound of appreciation that left Lily smiling for the rest of the
afternoon. Margaret stood entranced and seemed to think
that such a suitor should not be wasted and could Lily
arrange an introduction for her.

97
 CHAPTER TWELVE

DECISION

Michael had much to think about. He was well aware

of the tide of feeling that was sweeping him towards Lily.
He noticed how he tended to speed up as he drove towards
her house, ignoring the dog's protest, as he rushed past her
favourite walking spot without stopping. He had tackled
Marian about the message that he would marry a younger
psychic. Thinking back, she said she was not sure what,
Nancy had actually said. She might have interpreted that
wrongly, but the sense of the message was definitely to
marry a younger woman. ‘Yes,’ said Michael, ‘I see.’
He thought to himself, ‘Lily is a year younger than
Nancy was. To her she would be a younger woman. That
could be the answer.'
Michael and Marian were often booked to take
services together in different parts of Devon, and as Marian
was now widowed, they often talked about their lives and
how it would be impractical to marry again. Marian was
good looking and looked younger than her 40 years.
‘Where would I find a man to put up with my life.’
she said. 'I am matron at a residential home and I'm used to
giving orders, not taking them. My housework is done by
7.30 a.m., and I'm at work by 8. I fill my sitting room with
circles and sitters in the evenings and on Wednesday and
Sundays I often go off with you to serve Churches. What
man would put up with that?'
Michael felt rather the same. His time was entirely
filled by his tape business, his meetings, his writings, and his
beloved books. A medium had once said to Nancy,
'I SEE YOUR HUSBAND SURROUNDED BY BOOKS -

98
DON'T YOU MIND?’
Her good-humoured reply was 'Oh, I'm used to it!’
He loved books of many kinds. He tried to keep up with
science and philosophy and with his old love, conservation.
He had access to many books on Spiritualism and the
paranormal, and he generally had at least three books on the
go in different rooms in the house. Having been a
magistrate, he had tried to keep up with the law and its many
changes but he had had to abandon it for lack of time and
because he found it was better to look things up when
needed rather than rely on memory. Then there were other
things to think about.
How would marriage affect his family, the children
and the grandchildren? Lily had got on well with three of
them already, and she had an excellent way with people.
Then there were the dogs. His collie was rather jealous of
little ‘Lucky,' and wanted to take over Lily, but she growled
a warning if 'Lucky’ tried to be affectionate to him.
For years now Michael had had a sense of mission, a
very awkward thing for a wife to live with. He had been
willing to travel to any meeting in Devon wanting a speaker
on Conservation. He had taught Conservation surreptitiously
for years at school until; at last it became officially
recognised and incorporated into the curriculum, when he
could do so openly.
Now the truth about Life after Death, and the Spiritual
Evolution of Life, was his gospel, and his drive to teach was
as strong as ever. Would it be fair to ask Lily to put up with
this?
He had a picture of them working together,
despatching tapes, writing letters while living in domestic
bliss. Certainly, Lily wrote marvellous letters, He usually
received one a day and he always looked for them. She

99
expressed herself so easily on paper - yet surprisingly for a
woman, she was sparing of the spoken word, never using
two when one would do, preferring to look after people and
listen, rather than hold the floor. It was not that she hadn't
got opinions, and when action was needed she was ready
with them, as her many past battles showed. He was pretty
sure she loved him and she had Charlie's blessing, almost his
instructions, to commit herself to a new partnership. She had
said, 'I think Charlie seems quite bossy now, a thing he
never was when we were married.’
'Yes', he had answered, 'but only because he wants
your happiness.’
Michael had had an offer of marriage already, and an
offer to live with a woman. Nancy had come through
quickly and warned him off one lady. Marian had said to
him,
'NANCY IS TICKLED PINK BUT SAYS YOU'D
NEVER BE HAPPY WITH THAT ONE.'
He had had several messages from her recently, Ann
Lambden, at Exeter, had said,
'I HAVE YOUR LADY HERE. SHE SENDS LOTS
OF LOVE AND SAYS SHE IS STARTING TO TEACH.
SHE TRIES TO GET YOU TO WRITE. PLEASE WRITE
THAT ARTICLE NOW! AND WHAT ABOUT THE
PUDDING?’ (Tim had completely demolished a pudding
Michael had left in the fridge). ‘SHE SAYS YOUR
SPIRITUAL KNOWLEDGE IS GOING UP LIKE THAT.’
ANN MADE AN UPWARD CURVE OF HER HAND,
'BUT REMEMBER, WISDOM IS ONLY AS GOOD AS
THE RECIPIENT! Lots of love from your lady.’
On the way home from a service on 4th May, Marian
suddenly said, 'Nancy's in the back travelling with us. She
said you will marry again and shows two rings. Now she's

100
saying, ‘I myself won't be alone either!’ (This came true in
1992.)
Next came a telephone message from Janet Horton.
Janet said she had heard Nancy singing the song,
'TOTALLY DEVOTED TO YOU,’ from the show Grease.
‘Nancy then said,
'BE SURE TO TELL MICHAEL I AM SO PROUD
OF HIM. I AM WITH HIM WHEN HE GETS READY TO
GO TO CHURCH AND THEN I GO TO THE CHURCH
TO HEAR THE ADDRESS.'
Michael knew she was sometimes at the Church
because Marian would say, 'Nancy's helping me with the
clairvoyance.’ Once when a lady denied knowing a contact
described by Marian, Nancy had said in her ear, 'Now we
will give her something to think about,' and described details
of a spirit presence the woman could not refuse to accept.
Michael's thoughts revolved around marriage and all
it involved. He would wake early and think about it until it
was time to get up. Then in the bath he would turn it over
again. It was such a complex task to unite two lives
harmoniously when for nearly half a century they had shared
their lives with different partners. Financially he could help
her. Domestically she was a brilliant cook and organiser.
Then there was sex, which might or might not be
appropriate. In his day one presumed everyone did it and
almost nobody talked about it, but according to the woman's
magazines he saw in the dentist's waiting room, nowadays
many people talked about it and a lot of them had problems
with it. He had been impressed by the definition of chastity
he read in the latest Roman Catholic Catechism, which said,
‘We exercise the virtue of chastity in marriage by frequent
expressions of our love, especially through mutually desired
sexual intercourse, in the hope of having a reasonable

101
number of children at appropriate times.'
Well the latter part was inappropriate and anyway,
with three children he had already exceeded his quota of 2.1
children, as recommended by the conservationists.
Then there was the question of houses and furniture.
He had already moved from a big house to a smaller one,
and from a smaller one to a tiny one. If Lily did come to live
with him where could all her favourite things go in his little
house, or should he move to Mortonhampstead away from
his family and interests, where she had spare rooms?
While all these questions revolved in his mind,
something deep inside him said, 'It's right and you're going
to ask her and she will accept you.' It was in this frame of
mind that Michael went to Mortonhampstead to stay with
Lily on 10th May. He had already told his family and
various committees that he might be spending some time at
Mortonhampstead and he had given them the telephone
number in case of need. How much speculation this caused
he did not know but he no longer bothered about it.
When he arrived the day was perfect and he helped
Lily in the garden. The sun shone from a clear blue sky.
Roses were blooming in profusion and everything was
springing into leaf or blossom. They lunched in the wooden
chalet at the top of the garden, watching the birds wheeling
and turning over the garden and the newly thatched roof of
the old house. Beyond, the sheep made little white dots on
the green background of the moor. The Dartmoor hillside
was littered with granite boulders and in the heat haze, it
was hard to tell the animals from the rocks until they moved
as they grazed.
Lucky, the Jack Russell slept peacefully in the
sunlight| apparently lost to the world, but always one ear
was cocked. When she was a tiny puppy, the blackbirds that

102
got into the fruit cage had persecuted her. They had set upon
her in gangs as they fought for the fruit. Now she had
reached her full height and bulk, she had a vendetta against
them. Let one even swoop across the garden and she was on
her feet threatening violence. Other birds could alight close
to her and she stirred not a whisker but she seemed to know
even the approaching flight of a blackbird and was ready for
battle.
The next day, the 11th May 1991, was overcast and
there was a threat of rain in the air. Michael and Lily were
writing indoors on the dining room table. Some time before,
Michael had presented her with a portable phone that she
could take to bed or out into the garden when she was
working. It lay on the table between them. It bleeped and
Lily answered it. It was her friend Margaret. Realising that
Michael was there, she said to Lily, 'What do I call him, the
boy friend or your fiancée?’
Lily laughed and said ‘I'll have to ask him,’ at which
Michael laughed but he did not reply until she put the phone
down. When she did, he simply smiled and said the highly
unromantic words:
'I think we'd better do something about it.' He waited
for her to speak. Lily replied, ‘If you are sure, then ‘Yes!’
Suddenly all was settled; they were engaged to be
married! Michael at once wanted to tell somebody. He rang
his younger son in London, who seemed genuinely pleased
at the news. He was liberated from indecision, full of hope
and plans for a new life. He felt a rush of new energy and an
inner happiness that boded well for the future. He wondered
what Nancy would say. He felt she would approve and he
hoped she would manage to give her opinion on this step,
that she had herself forecast.
He had to return to Topsham on Sunday 12th. That

103
evening, at the Exeter Church, he had a message through
Pamela Wood, a medium from Wales. It was not from
Nancy but from his brother Eric, an army major who had
passed in 1980. The medium said,
'YOUR BROTHER LOOKED AS YOU DO NOW.
HE THOUGHT ALL THIS WAS A, 'LOAD OF
BALONEY,’ BUT HE CAN ACCEPT DEFEAT. YOU
HAVE BEEN BOGGED DOWN BUT YOU CAN NOW
LOOK AHEAD. DON'T GIVE UP.’ She then added, 'A
DOG SITS ON THE CHAIR NEXT TO YOU LOOKING
UP AT YOU.'
Michael was pleased with the message from his down
to earth plain-speaking brother, but it still was not what he
really hoped for, On the Thursday following, he deliberately
had not told the members of the group or any mediums he
knew, about his engagement, preferring to wait and see if a
message from Spirit would refer to it. When it came it was
half joking, Marian said,
‘NANCY‘S HERE.’ SHE SAYS, ‘A MAN CHASES
A WOMAN UNTIL SHE CATCHES HIM,’ AND SHE
LAUGHS IN A FRIENDLY WAY. SHE IS POURING
APPLE BLOSSOM OVER YOU AND LAUGHING.’
Michael was pleased by the next message from Janet
Horton, on 22nd May, It said,
'YOUR HAPPINESS IS MY HAPPINESS, I LOVE
YOU.’
On 26th May, at the Dawlish Church, his Plymouth
Bretheren grandfather spoke through Mrs Davies. She said:
'He Is a learned gentleman with a beard. He helps you with
your writing. Writing is your forte. You must, write for
those who will come after you.' Mrs Davies then went on,
‘I HAVE A LADY HERE WHO COMES VERY
CLOSE, SHE SAYS, ‘YOUR HAPPINESS IS MY

104
HAPPINESS.’ SHE SENDS YOU ONE RED ROSE. YOU
WILL KNOW WHAT IT MEANS.'
Michael was delighted with the message and the
repetition of the identical phrase through a different
medium. There was even more to come. Audrey brought
him a written note of a message from Janet Horton. It said,
‘MICHAEL, THE MERRY WIDOWER, HAS
MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE. HE HAS NOT DEPARTED
FROM HIS SCRIPT. THE LADY WILL HELP HIM WITH
HIS WORK.’
She had showed Janet a map with two pens drawing
parallel lines, as Lily and he went on their way together.
Janet had then asked her,
‘Aren't you jealous?’ Nancy replied,
‘NO, SUCH A THING CANNOT BE IN SPIRIT,
IT'S HARD FOR YOU WITH YOUR EARTH BRAINS TO
UNDERSTAND WHEN WE TRY TO TELL YOU THE
TRUTH ABOUT THINGS.’ She sang again the song.
‘TOTALLY DEVOTED TO YOU', and then mentioned a
mutual friend, Marcia, and Michael remembered what he
had forgotten, that he was due to go to a fund-raising coffee
morning at Marcia's house. He now felt content that Nancy
had blessed his coming marriage and he was intrigued at the
words, ‘He has not departed from his script'. It confirmed
the Spiritualist teaching that each person agrees an outline
plan of their future life before they are born into this world,
but the memory of it is almost obliterated, except as an
instinctive feeling of purpose.’

105
 CHAPTER THIRTEEN

INTRODUCTIONS

Lily was delighted that they were to marry. As she

told the news to her friends they were obviously thrilled and
pleased for her. Several admitted that they had thought that
Michael would ask another lady but they were very happy at
her news.
She did have a faint feminine feeling that she had
missed something. She had not exactly been swept off her
feet, nor courted with conventional gifts and promises, nor,
indeed, had she been the first time, with Charlie, when the
war was on and the bombs were falling nightly. On the other
hand she had her heart's desire, the man she now admitted
that she loved, and she had Charlie's blessing on the
marriage and the knowledge that he had helped to arrange it.
Life was full of excitement, She invited a group of
friends to spend the day at Mortonhampstead and go with
her and Michael to Dawlish Church in the evening. She
pulled out all the stops in preparing an elaborate lunch and
tea and after a happy afternoon they set out for the Church.
Lily in particular had not wanted the medium, Mrs Davies,
to be told of her engagement, but someone evidently had
already done so.
After the service, in which she did not get a message,
Mrs Davies congratulated her privately and said that Charlie
had, in fact, been there. He had said he was happy for her,
all was well and he wished them much happiness. After an
even more joyful supper, at Mortonhampstead, her friends
departed and as she and Michael saw them off they both
agreed it had been a really enjoyable weekend.
Michael went home on the Monday. He was very

106
busy with talks and meetings and Lily was fully employed in
the garden, watering and attending to picking, spraying and
planting. Many people called and telephoned. The new
portable phone was a boon, as she no longer had to come
down stairs at night or down the long, steep garden in the
daytime to answer it. Michael returned on Friday and they
began to discuss where to live. Mortonhampstead was
certainly isolated. With the recession, some shops were
closing and without a car they would be stranded in the
future as she had been. On the other hand while his village
was attractive and well served with shops, Michael's house
was very small. To deal with the problem he offered to put
his house up for sale and look for a bigger home nearby.
Michael was working away on the Sunday and
Margaret came over to Mortonhampstead to take Lily to
Church. Mr. Connibere from North Devon was the medium
and she thought he, at least, could know nothing of her
affairs. Beaming with smiles, he came to her and said,
'THERE IS MUCH REJOICING AROUND YOU.
YOU WILL FEEL VERY MUCH LOVED AND WHEN
THE SYCAMORE WINGS FALL, A GREAT
REJOICING; HAPPY SONGS AROUND YOU.'
He then broke into old music hall ballads, singing in a
nice strong voice, 'Come into the garden Maud, I'm Henry
the VIII, I am,' with a face full of pleasure at the message he
was transmitting. Lily felt contented on the way home,
chatting to Margaret about the service and when exactly
sycamore seeds fell.
The congregation at the Exeter Church had not heard
much about Michael's prospective marriage, as his messages
had not come in services there. It was time, they both felt,
for Lily to be introduced to them, so she arranged to come to
the Church with Margaret on the following Saturday

107
evening.
Michael arrived early and they stood in the reception
area to greet people coming in. It was something of an
ordeal for Lily as she had heard that it was thought that he
might, marry someone in Exeter. When she was introduced
to the first lady as, 'The lady who is going to be my wife',
the shock registered all too clearly on the lady's face, but
was quickly replaced with a warm smile. Michael had often
noticed that Lily had an excellent friendly way of meeting
people, which they soon reciprocated. The news soon spread
and in no time more people than she could possibly
remember had greeted her.
Half jokingly, Margaret had brought smelling salts to
revive any ladies who passed out, but they were not required
and as they left they felt the evening had gone well. Lily
spent the next weekend at Topsham. They walked along the
beautiful waterfront with its old houses and unspoilt views.
The weather was fine and warm. The tide was high and a red
sunset reflected from the smooth surface of the river, except
where it was broken by the silent return of the white sailed
racing dinghies, as they sailed slowly and gently back to the
Topsham Yacht Club.
The next morning they decided to have breakfast in
the garden as the weather was so warm. One thing Lily liked
about the house was the superb view from the garden, which
was on the Topsham cliff, high above the road and houses
below.
Beneath them, as they breakfasted, was the Yacht
Club with its many racing dinghies and the River Exe
stretching away to left and right. Beyond that was the Exeter
Canal with it swing bridge that opened now and again to
allow boats to pass. Along the canal banks fishermen were
already to be seen among the reeds and tall grass and beyond

108
them were the fields of the Exminster marshes, with minute
cattle grazing and the occasional tractor working in the
fields. Beyond the fields she could see the main railway
from London to Plymouth with express trains speeding
along, gleaming in the sunlight. Beyond that again, she
could see the Exeter to Dawlish main road and the fields and
woods climbing the sides of the distant Haldon Hills.
On the crest of the hills, silhouetted against the sky
was a mysterious tower or castle.
It all looked beautiful in the sunlight but she still had
doubts about a garden over the road from the point of view
of the little dog, used at home to have the run of the garden
during the daytime.
On the Saturday they went to see H.M.S. Pinafore at
the Barnfield Theatre in Exeter. The production was
excellent, the seats comfortable and Lily felt the magic of
the occasion, something she had not experienced for many
years. Above all they were together, secure in their
affection, sharing an evening of pleasure and companionship
away from the workaday world.
Lily now felt she was entitled to pay attention to
Michael’s appearance. For some time he had avoided the
hairdresser's, unless a public appearance forced him to go.
She was a good hairdresser and as she took the matter in
hand, he was delighted with the improvement she made and
the delicacy with which she worked. She enjoyed seeing to
his clothes and smiled at his attempts at needlework. There
was no doubt she was completely in love with him in
everyway, yet she still loved Charlie as much as ever, and
still longed for messages from him which showed that he
approved of her new happiness. On 23rd June she had her
wish. A new medium, Mrs Lewis, came to the Exeter
Church and gave her a message from him. She said,

109
 'I HAVE A GENTLEMAN HERE WHO LOVES
YOU. HE HAD, A LITTLE BLACK AND WHITE JACK
RUSSELL TERRIER’ HE SAYS HE STILL ENJOYS
WALKING IN COUNTRY CONDITIONS. HE TELLS ME
YOU HAVE HAD MANY TROUBLES AND A SPELL
WHEN YOU COULD NOT GET OUT. HE SAYS YOU
ARE ASKING MANY QUESTIONS, BUT DON'T
WORRY, ALL WILL WORK OUT WELL. HE
EMPHASISES COUNTRY CONDITIONS AND SAYS
YOU MUST GET STRONG AS YOU HAVE MUCH
WORK TO DO.’ He's laughing and holding up working
gloves.’
After the service Lily explained to Mrs. Lewis about
Charlie and introduced Michael. They saw tears come to the
medium's eyes. She looked so pleased as she said, 'There is
such a lovely light round the two of you! I do hope you will
be happy',
On the Monday Michael drove Lily home and then
returned to Topsham. Her old house now seemed lonely and
quiet. She realised she was no longer used to being alone
and hated it. She began to think again about where it would
be best to live; Michael had grown fond of her old house
with its handsome bathroom that she and Charlie had
installed. He loved the garden and being able to walk out
easily on to the moors with the dogs. She had asked her
landlords and they were quite willing for Michael to live
there if they married and indeed inherit the tenancy if she
died first. On the other hand, the road to Exeter was bad in
winter. Michael would have to drive many miles, going to
and fro, and if at any time he could not drive, they would be
housebound, as she had been. Michael had offered to try to
sell his house and buy a bigger one but she was afraid it
would cost him a great deal. The Financial Times had

110
referred to the area where Michael lived as the Chelsea of
Exeter and houses of any kind were at a premium there. She
began to think that, if need be, she would give up some of
her hard won possessions if it would help them to be happily
settled together in the little house.
Michael's two sons now began to take an interest in
what their father was 'getting up to’, as they put it among
themselves. They wanted to know who his lady was that had
captured his affection and agreed to marry him. Their
mother, Nancy, and father, Michael, had seemed such a
stable married couple that the idea of him married to another
woman brought a slight feeling of disquiet, combined with
the pleasant thought that at least he would not be left alone
to grow old. The younger son, John, was a council housing
officer, a computer specialist with a keen appreciation of the
countryside, although he lived in London,
He came to stay with Michael for a few days and
together they went over to Lily's for lunch. John seemed to
take to Lily at once and was fascinated with the old house
and its history. Lily had lain on a sumptuous lunch which
they all enjoyed. After several helpings of everything, John
pushed back his chair looking very contented and said,
'What happens to this house if anything happens to
you two?’
They both burst out laughing at his frank display of self-
interest, and explained that they might be going to give it up
and move to Topsham. After lunch John wandered round the
garden admiring the flowers and fruit. He chatted so easily
to Lily that Michael could see that he accepted her and felt
quite at ease. After a brief walk on the nearby moor with the
dogs they had to leave for Topsham.
As they said 'Goodbye', Michael could tell from Lily's
face that she too felt the meeting had been a success. They

111
had crossed the first hurdle.

Lily at Moretonhampstead 1991.

On July 6th Michael's older son, and family, came to

visit. They had driven directly from Cardiff and were to go
on to Michael's house to stay. Richard arrived rather late
with his wife, Iona and their two young daughters, after a
lengthy hold up on the Motorway. A beautiful meal had
been waiting for some two hours and they were very
apologetic about being late. Richard looked very tired,
112
almost too tired to eat. After the meal he revived and went
out with the girls to the children's playground that bordered
the house. Michael went out as well. As the children played
in the sunshine he sat watching from a nearby seat. Richard
was a marvellous father, he thought, always encouraging the
girls and also safeguarding them. The scene was idyllic. The
girls had made friends with local children and were playing
happily. The playground was surrounded by glorious views
of the Dartmoor hills. Suddenly Richard called to him,
‘I'm just going in for a bit, Dad, can you watch the
girls?' and he disappeared into the house.
After half an hour the children were still playing but
no Richard returned and Michael felt suddenly uneasy.
Richard was always reliable. Something must have gone
wrong, He collected the girls, who were not anxious to leave
their game, and with his collie, Bracken, he made his way
into the house. Hearing voices in the kitchen he entered, to
find Richard sitting in a chair facing the seated Lily. He was
talking earnestly and Lily's face wore an amused but tolerant
smile.
'I wondered where you'd got to,' said Michael, and his
brawny son started up rather apologetically and dropped the
conversation. Later, Lily recounted to Michael what had
occurred. Richard had quite firmly cornered her, and
questioned her intensively about her history and
background.
'Obviously,' Lily said,’ he was protecting your
interests, and I just smiled at his determination to satisfy
himself that I was a suitable person for you to marry
Anyway, he seemed satisfied with my answers, so all is
well.’
Michael felt a little annoyed with Richard, whatever
his motives, and very pleased that Lily took it all so

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pleasantly.
As the children played in the garden, Richard and
Iona had a guided tour of the old house. They were both
impressed with its history and atmosphere and felt it would
be a great pity to let it go out of the family. They also felt
Lily would be unhappy in the little Topsham house, which
was dark and awkward, with it's garden over the road.
Michael knew they all loved Dartmoor and could quite see
their point of view, seeing it as they were, on one of the
loveliest of summer days. They had not seen it as Lily had,
in winter, when the roads were impassable and the
electricity was off for hours or even days at a time, and the
moors were covered in mists and storms of rain. They might
think differently then.
Michael was to stay the night at Mortonhampstead,
but he and Lily drove in his car a short way with the family
to show them a favourite walk on the high moor, from,
which they could look down on the little town where Lily
lived. As they walked, Iona, an intelligent young woman,
who had been very fond of Nancy, took up the subtle
questioning of Lily on her own account. She seemed quite
satisfied with the results and very willing to be friendly and
welcome her into the family.
Michael went to the 3 o'clock service at Exeter
Church on the following Sunday. The medium was Ann
Lambdon and she came to him to say,
‘I MUST, COME TO YOU. YOUR LADY NANCY
IS HERE. SHE SAYS SHE IS SO HAPPY AND SHE'LL
BE THERE ON THE DAY. SHE WISHES SHE COULD
BE A BRIDESMAID BUT THAT'S NOT ON. SHE HAS
MET TOMMY, SHE SENDS LOTS AT LOVE.'
This message was pleasing and also evidential.
Tommy went back to Nancy's childhood and no one else

114
would know the story that lay behind the name. He went
home after the service with a light heart and an even greater
admiration for Nancy's loving communications. That
evening he rang Lily to tell her of the cheerful message. She
asked again what they had often wondered, why they were
being so favoured? Between them they had over twenty
years experience of Spiritualist Church clairvoyance, yet
neither of them had ever heard such clear definite and
purposeful messages, directing spouses to remarry. Was
there some special purpose intended – ‘a phase destined -
matters beyond your control', as Grace Gooding had said
over twelve months before? What was the work they were to
do? They decided they would just have to wait and see.
During the following week Michael received another
message from Nancy, through Janet Horton, it said,
'WHEN YOU SAY, ‘I DO’, DON'T THINK WITH
SADNESS OF THE PAST. JUST THINK WITH JOY OF
THE LIFE WE HAD TOGETHER.’
Janet had been deeply touched to relay the message
and he was as touched to receive it.
On the 14th July they went together to a service at the
Dawlish Church. A well-known medium, Bertie Bolesworth,
took a very spiritual service. During the clairvoyance he
came to them jointly and said,
'I AM WITH BOTH OF YOU. THERE IS SUCH A
LOVELY LIGHT AROUND BOTH OF YOU, I WANT
YOU TO GO FORWARD ON THE TRACK THAT YOU
HAVE ALREADY STARTED TAKING, FOR OUT OF IT
WILL COME NOTHING BUT GOOD. DO YOU
UNDERSTAND? YOU ARE WORKING IN THE SAME
DIRECTION BETWEEN YOU, AREN'T YOU? THIS IS
WHAT THEY WANT TO SAY TO YOU, GO
FORWARD! NOTHING BUT GOOD CAN COME OF IT.’

115
 CHAPTER FOURTEEN

TOPSHAM WINS

During the previous weeks, Michael's sister-in-law,

Betty Smith, had been staying at Topsham. She had accepted
the news that Michael was to marry Lily with a most
charming letter of approval, and fully agreed with their
buying a larger house. Indeed, she had become quite
enthusiastic about it and as she enjoyed decorating, she
offered to repaint the living room and stairway to prepare
the house for sale. Michael was grateful, and gave her a free
hand in rearranging and reorganising things in preparation
for putting the house on the market. What time he had, he
put to tidying the garden, the sheds and the chalet to a
presentable condition. Betty had very good taste and
appeared to really enjoy the job of altering and improving
the look of the house and also taking round people who
came to view.
When Betty had to return to Southampton, Lily came
to say goodbye and thank her for her efforts. After she had
gone they walked round admiring her work and Lily
suddenly found the house seemed lighter and not so
crowded, and she felt it now seemed much more attractive
than when she first saw it.
They had looked at a few houses in Topsham, but
most of them were fairly small and very expensive. Also
they had nothing like the view over the river from the
present garden. Michael could see that Lily felt he would be
spending a good deal of money to get a bigger house and
what he could afford would not bring many advantages.
When finally, she said she had decided that she could live in
the little house after all, if she could make changes in the

116
garden, he was delighted and willingly agreed to alter the
garden layout.
Lily took him round and showed him how many trees
were diseased or too old to be of use, and how a long thick
hedge harboured slugs and snails and how she would like to
clear a space for a rose and flower bed. They agreed to draw
up plans for re-shaping the garden and transferring as many
as possible of Lily's precious shrubs and flowers to the
Topsham garden.
Richard's family had arranged to stay for a week at a
private campsite in West Wales, opposite Ramsey Island.
Michael had long promised to go and take his grand
daughter, Kathleen, to stay with them. The family would be
in their frame tent and he and Kathleen would stay in a
friend’s caravan and share their meals with them.
The two cousins were very fond of Kathleen, and she
enjoyed being the oldest of three, instead of the youngest of
three, as she was at home.
Kathleen was a bit, of a responsibility for Michael but they
had always got on well. The hardest job he found was to
plait her long auburn hair each morning.
She was very co-operative and enjoyed doing jobs and
fetching water or items from the camp shop. One night she
had a bad attack of toothache. He tried to relieve it with
various remedies without avail. He found some brandy
someone had left behind in the caravan and put it on the
tooth but it had no effect, In desperation, for she seemed in
agony, he said, 'Kathleen, I'm going to heal you, just relax
and trust me.’
Michael had had healing himself and had sometimes
tried to give it to others but he had no confidence in his
powers. To his amazement, he saw her whole body relax.
Within five minutes she was fast asleep and breathing

117
quietly and steadily. He stole into his own bed. When he
woke in the morning, he saw she was still sleeping. As he
made a cup of tea she awoke looking refreshed with no sign
of the pain of the previous night.
As they set off for home after the holiday the weather
was fine. They made good progress and some hours later,
having delivered Kathleen and her belongings to his
daughter, Michael arrived home. It was, he felt, the last
holiday he would take without Lily and he turned his mind
towards their joint future.
Three days later in the meditation circle, Sheila said,
'NANCY HAS JUST SPOKEN TO ME AND I
ASKED WHAT SHE THOUGHT OF MICHAEL'S
HOLIDAY. SHE SAID SHE SMILED AT MICHAEL'S
ATTEMPT TO PLAIT KATHLEEN’S HAIR.'
Michael smiled himself to realise she had watched
him tackling the task at which he was so clumsy and she had
always been so expert.
Lily had been missing Michael while he was away in
Wales but had been looking forward to accompanying him
to Bude, where he was to take a service. They discussed
over the phone what to do about their two dogs when they
went. This time they had been invited to tea with John, the
Chairman who had predicted that Lily would return to Bude.
They decided they would have to take the dogs with them on
the hundred and twenty mile journey. The day arrived, and
having given the dogs a good walk in the country, they
arrived and parked outside the Chairman's house. They had
decided the dogs must stay in the car during the visit.
The front door opened and their hostess, Hanalora,
came to the gate surrounded by a group of excited Yorkshire
Terriers. Michael and Lily shuddered when she suggested
that their two unruly dogs should join the others in the house

118
and the invitation was politely declined. Lucky and Bracken
were shut in the car, the usual chocolate drops were given
and they were told to be good. Once in the house, howls of
indignant barking broke out from the car, which made them
feel embarrassed. At their hostess's insistence, with fear and
trepidation, they brought the dogs in.
The four tiny terriers, scuttling about the floor,
amazingly reduced the two wilful dogs to terrified silence.
After a pleasant tea, the chairman led the way in his car to
the church. The only place Michael could park was
immediately outside the entrance door. He wondered how
the dogs would behave. In the past, each separately had
behaved well. Together they now seemed to unite in a joint
effort to get their own way.
The usual instructions were given to behave but
Michael's worst fears were realised. Having succeeded in
getting their own way at the house, the dogs set about
repeating the performance. As Michael began the service,
above his voice could be heard a horrific noise of barking
from the car. Once again, Hannalora suggested to Lily that
the dogs should be allowed in, but she knew it would be
impossible to control them by herself in their delight at
joining the congregation. Michael tried to shut his ears to the
sounds and concentrate on his address while Lily sat at the
back, imagining that at any moment some one would enter
the church to protest about the noise outside. She really
wished the ground would open up and swallow her as, not
having the car keys, she could, not even enter the car to try
and pacify them. Michael did his best to ignore the noise,
which must, at times, have drowned his voice. It was a
nerve-racking experience for them both and, after the
service, Michael vowed he would never ever again take
them when he had to take a service. With profuse apologies

119
to one and all, they were glad to set out for home, still
feeling embarrassed by the episode. It was some days before
they could see the funny side of the incident.
Having suffered from this experience, Lily decided
something must be done. She did not want a repeat
performance by the two dogs who, egged each other on to
bark when they were left alone together. She explained to
her healer friend. Phyllis, that she was going to stay with
Michael at Topsham, and asked her if she would be prepared
to come and stay at the house to look after Lucky. Phyllis
readily agreed, and as she had no transport, it was arranged
for Michael to call for her on his way to Mortonhampstead
when he drove to collect Lily, a few days later.
As arranged, Michael fetched Lily to stay at Topsham.
The town was decorated for Carnival Week and the weather,
which had been dull, brightened up. They were now having
all their meals in the garden as the weather was so good and
Lily enjoyed watching the busy scene on the river below
them as the dinghies manoeuvred for the start of the races
and the bigger cruisers passed by, going from their moorings
to the estuary and open sea to the south. It seemed a
heavenly time and Michael felt that Lily was settled in her
mind and would come to live in his little house.
To themselves, they seemed already married. A
ceremony could not add to what they felt for each other and
Lily said she would be willing to live with him, just as they
were, if he preferred it. Michael had no such unconventional
ideas. He wanted an honourable marriage with Lily provided
for as far as possible, if he had to go on first, to wherever it
was that Nancy and Charlie were so busy.
Being Topsham Carnival Week, they both enjoyed the
general carnival atmosphere in the town, with all the
shopkeepers in Victorian dress. There was a function every

120
evening and when Lily heard the music playing for dancing
in the square and the locals were slow to take to the floor,
she forgot her years and longed to be the first to start the
dance. She persuaded Michael to go out and watch the
crowd and listen to the music, but then suddenly felt she
must not, perhaps, be too forward in a town where he was so
well known. Stalls were busy, cooking and selling various
dishes. They contented themselves with eating roast pork
sandwiches, and sitting, listening to the music and watching
the scene as the men finally got up their courage and the
dancing began.
On the Thursday they returned to Mortonhampstead to
see the carnival there and also keep an eye on the old house
during the festivities. They visited a fair which had just
arrived for its annual visit, As they wandered round Michael
realised that he had taught the owner as a boy, for a few
months each winter. He made himself known and they were
immediately invited into the handsome caravan, to be
introduced to the owner's wife and daughter and share an
evening meal with them. The owner, Tony, was happy to
talk about his school days and Lily heard many tales of
Michael's firmness and humour as a teacher, especially how
he kept order and she could see that Tony still looked up to
him.
They were fascinated to hear from the family the
hardship and romance of their travelling life. They all
seemed to turn their hand to every job at any hour of the day
or night. Tony's wife even went out cleaning, to bring in
extra money to keep the hard-pressed fair on the road. The
new government Business Tax was bearing hard on them
and they were working harder and harder just to keep food
on the table and pay wages. In the days of prosperity Tony
had bought his own winter quarters where they could rest

121
and service the equipment in the winter break. This had
required a considerable piece of land and now the land was
being assessed as a business at a rate they just couldn't pay
out of the earnings of a fair.
Tony felt he might, have to give up and live on the
dole in their van but both the women, especially the
daughter, were determined to keep the fair going in spite of
the hard evidence of the bank balance. Mother and daughter
were each taking a part of the fair off to another village on
the next day, while Tony stayed in Mortonhampstead with
the main section. They were trying everything they could
think of to increase their takings and stay afloat
Eventually the pair had to leave the caravan with its
warm welcome and hard pressed family and they walked out
and round the fair to see if they could spend or lose some
money at the side shows to aid the struggling fair's finances.
They now returned to Topsham for the weekend to see to
affairs and watch the carnival procession there.
Lily had, as she herself said, an almost childlike love
of coloured lights. Some of the floats in the carnival
procession were brilliantly lit with thousands of lights, and
she thoroughly enjoyed watching the show and straining to
photograph the best scenes as mementoes of a happy time.
She now felt relaxed and people who knew her said she
looked years younger. She felt settled and happy in
Topsham and loved spending every possible hour in the
sunny garden.
On Sept. 1st, Michael had been invited to take a
service at a little church at Oreston in Plymouth. Margaret
agreed to baby sit for the dog, and Lily travelled down with
him and was able to read the map and find the way to the
little church. Her friends John and Anne had come specially
to meet her and they sat together, Michael was on the

122
rostrum with the chairman and the medium, Mollie Clift.
When it came to the clairvoyance the medium turned to
Michael and said,
' I HAVE A GENTLEMAN HERE WHO LEFT HIS
AFFAIRS IN A MUDDLE, CONFUSION, WHEN HE
PASSED ON. HE WARNS YOU TO BE CAREFUL NOT
TO DO THE SAME. THERE IS ALSO A GENTLEMAN,
THE SPITTING IMAGE OF YOU, A MATHEMATICIAN
WHO WORKS CLOSELY WITH YOU.’
Michael knew at once about the muddled affairs. His
grandfather, Major Frederick Barnes, had left a will with
contradictory clauses in it. Because of this, it had had to be
settled by a High Court Judge under the law of Hotchpotch
and his mother had had to wait many years for her share of
the inheritance. As Michael was preparing to change his will
this was appropriate and he noted the warning. The
mathematician was obviously his father who had 1st class
honours at Cambridge and who was born in Plymouth.
The medium next went to Lily towards the back of the
church and said,
‘YOU LOOK TOO FAR AHEAD, TRYING TO
MAP THINGS OUT, BUT IT MAY NOT GO THAT
WAY. YOU HAVE A FAST BRAIN AND DO NOT
ALWAYS UNDERSTAND THOSE WHO ARE SLOW. I
SEE KNITTING. THE GARMENT IS FINISHED AND
TAKEN AWAY. THEY SAY YOU MUST BE LESS
IMPATIENT. YOU'RE HAVING A PROBLEM READING
THE PATTERN SO YOUR EYESIGHT MAY GIVE
TROUBLE. I SEE YOU LECTURING, GIVING TALKS.
YOU WILL BE PLEASED WITH WHAT YOU
THOUGHT YOU COULD NOT ACHIEVE. A MAN
HERE, WHO STARTED IN THE CHURCH OF
ENGLAND. THAT ALL FELL APART BUT HE GOT IT

123
TOGETHER AGAIN. HE SAYS YOU HAVE HAD A
HARD TASK FOR A FEW MONTHS, DOING TWO
DAYS WORK IN ONE, HE SEES YOU GIVING ADVICE
TO CHILDREN AS IF YOU SAW THE CHILD’S POINT
OF VIEW.’
After the normal service, there was a healing session
and Lily took the opportunity of having healing for her
damaged shoulder, injured at the time of Charlie's death.
The message gave Lily food for later thought. For the
moment she enjoyed the lovely atmosphere in the church,
the fact that Michael looked so well and sounded so
confident and that she could feel that her friends were
appreciating him as much as she did. As they left the church
and said goodbye to their friends they talked over the fact
that the messages were still coming to them and those in
spirit were still concerned and advising them. Michael knew
all about Lily's fast brain. It worked like lightning at times
and he had learned not to challenge her instant response to
events. Often she was two steps ahead in her thinking and
usually correct.
Michael had a friend, an Indian doctor, a consultant,
neurologist and psychiatrist who offered to take them out for
a meal. Lily felt she would like to invite him to lunch at
Mortonhampstead to see her house, so Michael and he came
together with his beautiful daughter, who was studying to be
a doctor like her father. Lily once again laid on an excellent
meal and the visitors had good appetites.
The doctor had been to Catholic boarding school in
India and was also very knowledgeable about Eastern
religions and Spiritualism so that he and Michael always had
plenty to talk about. When he had been a student in India he
had visited a medium, who had given him a prophecy as to
his future career, all of which had since come true. He had
124
asked some time ago if Michael could arrange a sitting for
him with a good medium in England. Michael had made an
appointment for him to see a lady he did not know but who
had been highly recommended by friends. She did not work
in churches but took four consultations a day at home, and
was generally booked up at least three months in advance.
After a tour of the old house and the garden, the
visitors departed and Lily was left alone to contemplate the
task of moving from a comfortably furnished house into an
already furnished two-bed-roomed house. She could see that
many of her things would have to go. Even closer to her
heart were her favourite plants and bushes, some of which
had accompanied her from house to house over the years.
She began to think of what she could give away, what to sell
and which furniture and plants could come with her to
Topsham.
Nancy was still sending messages to Michael. His
friend Audrey normally had her hair done at Janet's salon on
a Wednesday morning. Unusually this week, she had booked
for a Thursday morning. When Audrey arrived, Janet had a
message for Michael already written down for her to pass on
to him. Apparently Nancy had actually appeared to Janet as
she was getting the salon ready for opening. She saw her
clearly, whole, but transparent, and she said, ‘REMEMBER
AUDREY COMES TODAY’, which Janet had forgotten.
She made a gesture of taking her own heart with her hands
and said,
'I WANT TO GIVE THIS TO LILY AND MICHAEL.’ She
then showed Janet a picture of Lily and Michael both
wearing school satchels and said, ‘THEY HAVE A LOT TO
LEARN BUT THEY WILL LEARN IT.’
It was true, he thought, that they both loved to learn
new things in their own fields and they both noted things

125
that they thought would interest the other. But what
specially, was Nancy referring to, he wondered. It seemed as
though she already knew what it was but they would have to
do the learning while she watched their progress.
Charlie, too, was still getting messages through to
Lily when opportunity occurred. Michael, who now spent
much of his time at Mortonhampstead, drove Lily to
Dawlish Church on a Sunday, when Roger Keenan was
taking the service. He came to Lily and said,
‘DO YOU KNOW A CHARLIE, A FINE FIGURE
OF A MAN?’
'Yes,' she replied cheerfully.
'DID HE PICK YOU UP?’
‘Not recently,’ she replied.
‘IT’S JUST A MEMORY OF PICKING YOU UP.’ Roger
made a gesture with his hands of lifting someone and
steering or guiding them.
‘HE SAYS HE WENT SUDDENLY AND HAD AN
ANNIVERSARY ON 15TH JULY.’
'Yes - the 15th was his birthday.’
'HE LOVED WALKING IN THE COUNTRY.'
'Yes, when he could.'
‘NOW HE'S LEADING YOU BY THE HAND, GENTLY,
TO SEE YOU DON'T MAKE MISTAKES, GO INTO A
BUNKER. (HE'S USING GOLFING TERMS). HE’S
MANOEUVRING YOU INTO THE LIGHT TO BRING
YOU SATISFACTION - SPIRITUAL LIGHT- YOU'RE
NEARLY THERE. I SEE BOOKS, ILLUSTRATED
BOOKS. ARE YOU IN A CIRCLE?’
'No! It's Michael's circle.'
'HE SAYS WE HAVE WORKED HARD TO HELP IT.
CONDITIONS ARE NOT QUITE RIGHT YET, BUT HE
WILL CHANGE IT, SO DON'T WORRY. THERE WILL

126
BE CHANNELLING. HE SENDS MUCH LOVE. THERE
WILL BE GREAT HAPPINESS.’
Michael and Lily now set about the task of reshaping
the Topsham garden. First of all they tackled the trees.
These varied from a diseased pear tree some 8ft. high to a
cherry and laburnum both well over 20ft. high. In addition
there was a dense hedge of lilac suckers, of considerable
age, actually inside the garden. Michael climbed the trees
with a sharp bow saw and tackled each limb in turn. Lily
systematically lopped and dug out the hedge and collected
up the branches falling from the trees. After a few days of
working they had a pile of branches and greenery eight feet
high and fifteen feet or more across. Getting out the roots of
some was hard work, with spade, crow bar and axe they
worked away, and added to the mounting pile of wood and
foliage.
They declared Sundays a day of rest and in the
evening went to the Dawlish Church. After an excellent
service, the medium, John Greene, came to Lily with a
message,
‘HAVE YOU BEEN IN THE GARDEN?'
'Yes.'
‘THE RIGHT HAND SIDE - HAVE YOU BEEN DOING
SOMETHING?’
'Yes.'
'HE'S LAUGHING! HE SAYS, ‘IT NEEDS WEEDING!
HE'S TRYING TO WORK WITH YOU. YOU HAVE A
THOUGHT IN YOUR MIND THAT YOU WANT TO
ACHIEVE, HE WILL IMPRESS ON YOU THE BEST
WAY TO DO IT. HE WANTS IT ALL IN ITS PROPER
PLACE. HE SAYS HE'S HAPPY, AND HE'S HAPPY FOR
YOU. HE STILL HAS HIS THREE DOGS AND HE
TAKES THEM FOR WALKS. HE USED TO WALK

127
MILES AND LIKED TO WATCH NATURE. HE GETS
ALL THE NATURE HE WANTS NOW; HE'S IN HIS
GLORY. ALL THE DARK CLOUDS HAVE GONE
AWAY.’
The medium then turned towards Michael and said,
'He's patting you on the shoulder as he goes.'
After the service Lily said to Michael,
'That’s typical of Charlie, to tease about the weeding
when you are totally occupied in a really big job. He's done
it many time before when I've been up to my eyes in work.’
Doctor ‘X’s appointment with the medium was due on
26th September, At the last minute he was called in to
hospital to take a clinic and could not go, so Michael said,
'You take it, Lily, we cannot let the medium down!’
The instructions for finding the house had been given
for some one coming from another direction and they had
difficulty in finding it for a little while. When they reached
the road it was a charming, unpaved, tree-lined lane, running
towards the cliffs. Cars could only go so far, so they walked
the last 100 yards and as Lily entered the house. Michael
turned back to wait with the dogs in the car for her return.
Lily apologised for being a little late to a charming
woman who ushered her into a lounge that faced the garden
and the sea. They both sat down, the medium switched on a
tape recorder and started to speak in a low voice.
Michael waited patiently in the car, the two dogs were
restive, longing to get out and explore this exciting new
place. After a while he took them for a walk along the road,
which passed the house Lily had entered. Her dog, the Jack
Russell, was desperate to follow her scent into the house but
he restrained her and, after exploring another lane, they
returned to the car to wait. An hour had passed but still Lily
did not come. After another ten minutes he saw her walking

128
towards the car, her head bowed in thought.
‘What was it like?’ he asked.
Lily looked almost stunned,
'I can't tell you,' she said, 'You'll have to listen to the tape.’
As they drove back to Mortonhampstead, she gave him a
little more information. 'A lot of it was about you, and
Charlie and Nancy were there together. The medium said
she'd never known anything like it in all her experience.'
When they reached home they made a quick pot of tea
and started to transcribe the tape. To listen to, it was of
rather poor quality, yet the contents were fascinating, almost
incredible. In the end, after frequently replaying sections of
tape to make out doubtful words, it covered six sheets of
foolscap and Michael realised he would never remember it
all. On the other hand there were parts he would never
forget. He read the transcript over.
The medium had first described how she saw Lily.
She said,
'AS I SIT HERE, I KNOW I AM WITH A
SPIRITUAL PERSON, THERE IS SO MUCH LIGHT
COMING FROM YOU. I SEE HEALING WITH YOU,
ALSO SPEAKING HEALING, HELPING PEOPLE, I CAN
SEE IT COMING FROM YOUR MOUTH – THERE’S
TEACHING AS WELL. YOU HAVE A BOOK TO
WRITE, OLD KNOWLEDGE THAT COMES THROUGH
YOU. A LIGHT COMES FROM YOU, A BEAUTIFUL
SILVER-BLUE, EDGED WITH STARDUST. IT’S A
GOOD HEALING LIGHT.
YOU'RE GOING THROUGH CHANGE AT THE
MOMENT, I SEE YOU SORTING THINGS OUT IN
YOUR HEAD SAYING, ‘WE DON'T NEED THAT, LETS
CLEAR THIS, WE DON'T WANT THAT!’ YOU DON'T
WASTE YOUR EFFORT, YOU SEEM TO BE

129
GATHERING PEOPLE TO YOU, A NETWORK OF
LIGHT. I'VE JUST BEEN TOLD YOU ARE GIVING THE
POWER TO OTHERS. YOU SEEM TO BE IN A LIGHT
CENTRE. I SEE A TRIANGLE THAT REPRESENTS
THREE PEOPLE. GOSH! THERE ARE CHANGES
COMING - LEAPING CHANGES IN THE
ESTABLISHMENT. YOU HAVE BEEN, SHUNNED BUT
ALL THAT IS NOW CHANGING, PEOPLE ARE
PREPARED TO LISTEN TO YOU. I AM SEEING THE
WHITE COATS OF HEALERS AROUND YOU. THIS IS
GOOD WORK. THEY ARE BEGINNING TO REALISE
WHO IS MOST IMPORTANT. IT'S THE PEOPLE WE
ARE HERE TO HELP, NOT THE FACE OF MEDICAL
AUTHORITY.
THERE IS A MAN BEHIND YOU, A TALL
BESPECTACLED MAN, HE IS PART OF THIS
TRIANGLE, A CLEVER MAN, AS YOU ARE. THIS
MAN HAS QUALIFICATIONS. HE HAS THE
CONTACTS. IT’S LIKE HE'S PROTECTING YOU. YOU
WILL HAVE HIM HELPING YOU, BUT ACTUALLY HE
IS GOING TO BE GIVEN BACK SOMETHING THAT'S
BEEN TAKEN FROM HIM. ITS NOT EGO - IT'S SELF-
ESTEEM. NO EGO HERE.
HE HAS STOOD IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY,
HAS STOOD HIS GROUND AND HAD HARSH WORDS
SPOKEN ABOUT HIM. THE NAME, MICHAEL. HE'S A
SPECIAL MAN WITH HEALING ALL OVER HIM. HIS
WHOLE BEING IS FOR THE GOOD OF MANKIND.
THERE ARE GOING TO BE LECTURES AS WELL. I
SEE HIM STANDING UP TALKING TO MANY HEADS.
SUCCESS, NOT FOR SUCCESS’ SAKE, BUT SUCCESS
BECAUSE OF SPREADING THE WORD AND DOING
THE WORK. BOTH OF YOU HAVE GOT YOUR FEET

130
ON THE SAME PATHWAY.
I SEE A MOVIE CAMERA. HE'S A GOOD
SPEAKER. HE'S GOT A NICE SPEAKING VOICE. HE
CAN GET ACROSS TO HIS AUDIENCE, HE CAN
ACTUALLY TOUCH THE INDIVIDUAL THIS MAN,
WITH HIS WORDS. I FEEL DOORS OPENING - A
DOMINO EFFECT. ONE AND THEN ANOTHER, IT'S
ABOUT TO HAPPEN, YOU'RE ON THE VERGE OF IT
NOW. YOU'RE GOING TO BE IMPORTANT, LIKE A
GENERATOR, GENERATING POWER TO OTHERS. I
FEEL PRIVILEGED TO HAVE YOU HERE. I CAN SEE
THE GOOD YOU'RE GOING TO DO. YOU ARE GOING
TO OPEN TOTALLY NEW AVENUES FOR PEOPLE.
I SEE THREE PEOPLE. TWO ARE IN SPIRIT - A
MAN WITH A LOT OF LAUGHTER, A LOVELY SENSE
OF HUMOUR, A LOVELY MAN AND A LADY, WHO
HAS HAD A LOT OF HEALING. THE MAN WITH THE
LAUGHTER ON HIS FACE IS HELPING HER WITH
HER WORK. THEY ARE SITTING IN A GLORIOUS
GARDEN WITH ROSES OF ALL COLOURS AND
THERE'S HAPPINESS, I FEEL THEY ARE MAKING
SURE YOU DON'T GET LONELY, BOTH OF YOU. I'VE
NEVER SEEN THIS BEFORE IN ALL THE TIME I'VE
BEEN WORKING WITH SPIRIT.
SHE IS MAKING A DAISY CHAIN WITH
THORNLESS ROSES AND PUTTING IT ROUND BOTH
OF YOU. IT'S A LOVELY FEELING. SHE'S A LOVELY
LADY. DO YOU KNOW THERE IS LOVE BETWEEN
ALL FOUR OF YOU? YOU MADE A PACT BEFORE
YOU CAME TO THIS EARTH LIFE, THAT THIS
WOULD HAPPEN. THEY HAVE GONE ON AND LET
YOU TWO COME TOGETHER TO DO YOUR WORK.
YOU HAVE ALWAYS KNOWN ONE ANOTHER.

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IT MUST BE WONDERFUL SHE'S A GENUINE,
LOVELY LADY. SHE'S SAYING TO YOU, ‘THANK
YOU, THANK YOU!’ I GET A STRONG FEELING OF
LOVE FROM HER. THEY'RE IN A WONDERFUL
PLACE, A GARDEN, AND I HAVE A VISTA OF
ROLLING HILLS. YOU KNOW I SAW THE STARDUST
BEFORE! THEY ARE SITTING THERE HOLDING
HANDS, AND WHERE THEIR HANDS JOIN, THERE'S
STARDUST COMING DOWN LIKE A DRY
WATERFALL, SETTLING OVER THE TWO OF YOU.
THE LADY IS SAYING, ‘HE SHOULD TAKE
CARE OF HIS BACK!’ AND SHE'S STROKING IT,
GIVING IT HEALING. (Michael had strained it cutting
down the trees).
THEY ARE GIVING YOU LILIES, A SHEAF OF LILIES.
THEY ARE WHITE. THEY LOOK OLD-FASHIONED.
NOW I'VE GOT TO SAY THIS, IT SOUNDS
CORNY,‘THEY COME WITH OUR LOVE,’ NOT, ‘MY
LOVE,’ BUT, ‘OUR LOVE.’
IT WAS MEANT TO BE. YOU SEEM TO HAVE A
TWIN SPIRIT HERE AND THE SAME GOES FOR HIM,
YOU ARE THE OTHER HALF OF HIM. IT’S LIKE A
COIN THAT'S BEEN BROKEN IN HALF, BUT IN YOUR
CASE I AM SEEING THE COIN BROKEN AND THEN
BROKEN AGAIN, AND YOU ALL SEEM TO HAVE A
QUARTER OF IT. IT’S LIKE THE BITS OF A JIGSAW
FITTING TOGETHER. YOU WILL BE SHOWN THE
COIN. IT’S A GOLD COIN AND WHEN IT’S TURNED
OVER, THE OTHER SIDE IS SILVER, SO THERE'S NO
DARK SIDE TO IT.
YOU WILL BE HAPPY! NO REMORSE. NO
LIVING IN THE PAST. YOU WILL LIVE IN THE ‘NOW’
AND MAKE THE MOST OF THE PRESENT. THE LIFE

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YOU WILL LEAD IS BRILLIANT. IT’S A BEAUTIFUL
FEELING, LOVELY TO FEEL! LIGHT BROUGHT YOU
TOGETHER. DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE RING! IT
DOESN'T MATTER! THERE'S NO NEED. THIS IS NOT
THE ORIGINAL RING ANYWAY!’
At this point, Lily spoke for the first time and
mentioned Michael's desire to gain publicity for the truth of
Life after Death. The medium, without hesitation, continued,
'HE WILL. HE'S RIGHT ON THE VERGE OF IT
NOW. HE WILL BE UP ON THE PLATFORM AND IN
PUBLIC LIFE. YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO VISIT
CENTRES. YOU WILL BOTH BE SUCCESSFUL.
THANK YOU FOR COMING.’
The general drift of this message fascinated Michael.
It all seemed too good to be true. He thought of every
argument a sceptic could bring against it, but none of them
seemed to have any force. The medium had not seen him.
She had not known Lily was coming until the last minute.
Her description of Lily and of their hopes and plans rang
true even before Lily mentioned them.
Only Nancy knew his wedding ring was not the
original one - he had lost it while swimming in Lake
Meiktila, in Burma. He had dived again and again to try and
find it, without success. Only he and Lily knew they were
not going to buy another wedding ring, Lily would just use
her old one. The whole thing was just one more amazing
communication from their former partners.
He had often wondered if Nancy was lonely, she
needed a special companion - and it seemed she had found
one in Charlie. As to the statement that they had all known
each other before, that was a new idea but it seemed very
reasonable. Life with Lily seemed so natural and there were
so many similar links. The Tibetan had taught him - Charlie

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had studied the, 'Quest Course,’ based on the Tibetan's
books. All four had become Spiritualists after leaving the
Church of England. He and Lily were so much at home with
one another, that it felt as if they had always known each
other. Were Nancy and Charlie now partners in the next
world? A year after her passing, Nancy had sent him a verse
via Janet Horton. It read,
'I WANDERED DOWN THE ROAD AND FOUND
TRANQUILLITY. I WANDERED DOWN THE ROAD
AND FOUND LOVE. AND THEN I SAW, AND I FOUND
EVERYTHING, BUT TRY TOO HARD AND YOU WILL
FAIL!'
He wondered, was this the love she had found? He
had so wanted her to be happy and it certainly seemed as
though she was.
It took Lily several days to take in the message
properly. She was delighted that Michael's plans were to be
successful and she could assist them.
She was amused that Charlie was so linked with
Nancy, not that it was unusual for Charlie to be helping
another woman. She had become quite accustomed to his
caring for anyone in distress, doing their shopping, giving
them healing or wheeling them in their wheelchairs to the
shops or the surgery, but this was something different. If
they had all known one another before, the two of them
might be taking up where they left off. Altogether they felt
that this was, perhaps, the most amazing and encouraging
message they had had so far.

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 CHAPTER FIFTEEN

THE WEDDING

Charlie continued to come through with messages of

encouragement. On 13th October he impressed Dorothy
Davies at Dawlish to say,
‘TELL LILY THAT CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR
WILL BE A SPECIAL TIME, BETTER THAN FOR A
LONG TIME. DON'T WORRY ABOUT FINANCIAL
MATTERS, ALL WILL WORKOUT AS YOU WOULD
WANT IT TO. A SPECIAL HAPPENING WILL TAKE
PLACE BETWEEN NOW AND CHRISTMAS. HE SAYS
AGAIN, ‘DON'T WORRY!’ HE WILL BE THERE ON
THE DAY - ALL WILL BE WELL. HE SENDS
GREETINGS TO MICHAEL.'
On the 3rd November he came again at Dawlish. The
medium said,
‘CHARLIE SAYS, ‘THIS IS GOING TO BE A
BETTER CHRISTMAS THAN FOR THE LAST TWO OR
THREE YEARS. THE AGE OF MIRACLES IS NOT YET
PAST. ALL WILL BE WELL, ALL WILL BE GOOD’.
(THEY ARE ALL SMILES). GREAT LOVE COMES
WITH GREAT POWER FROM THIS MAN.’
They were now discussing plans for their wedding. In
all the circumstances, Lily wanted it to be as quiet as
possible. If they invited some and not others there might be
hurt feelings. If they invited many friends from both
churches it would be a big affair and people would want to
give wedding presents which they really had no need of, and
some of their friends could not afford it. As Michael said,
between them, at their time of life, they had two of
everything and a marked shortage of space to put them in.

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So it was agreed. Get married first. Tell people afterwards.
Without even telling Lily, Michael went to the Exeter
Registry Office to arrange a date for their marriage. He
chose 14th November. On the very next day Marian rang
him to say,
'What's going on? Nancy's been here. She showed me
a picture of herself using an old Remington Typewriter,
typing out Wedding Invitations.’
Caught off guard, Michael admitted he had been in
yesterday to arrange a wedding with Lily but he refrained
from telling her the actual date he had fixed. This was, if
possible, to be a secret, and she did not press him. Two
witnesses would be needed for the wedding. Michael had
two good friends who agreed to be bound to secrecy and
whom they knew they could trust. They seemed quite
pleased to be the only ones ' in the know.’
With the date fixed, there was a great deal to do. Lily
had a house, two outhouses, a work shed and a chalet to be
cleared out by the end of the quarter. She had already
promised her garden chalet to her old friend Phyllis Hunt
who had healed her years before, when she was almost
completely paralysed. Charlie had had a massive range of
tools and great stocks of every kind of wood. Some had
already been given away, but the remainder was far more
than could be fitted into Michael's workshop at Topsham: so
much had to be sorted and sold, or given away.
The Topsham garden was still completely covered
with the huge pile of wood and foliage so Michael decided
to hire a tipper truck to take it to the local 'tip’.

136
In the Exe Street Garden 1991.

The old wall of the garden was about 2' 6" high and 2'
wide, mostly topped with a thick hedge growing from the
soil in the gaps between the ancient stones. The drop to the
sunken road below was about eleven feet so that with the
lorry parked below, it was convenient to throw the greenery
down into it through a gap in the hedge. As it piled higher
and higher in the lorry, Michael's son-in-law, William,
jumped into the lorry to tread down the mass of twigs and
branches. At last, no more could be safely loaded and all
was carefully roped down. As Michael set off for the tip,
five miles away, Lily and William began to pile the next
load on to the wall, ready to be pushed over into the lorry.
They hoped to clear it all in two trips before the tip closed at
4.30 p.m. Michael drove carefully towards the local council
tip. He had often taken sacks of garden refuse there before.
With a tipper truck he hoped to be back for the next load in
half an hour. As he entered the gate he had his first shock. A
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man in a flat cap said to him,
‘You can't bring that in here! New rule! No more
than a quarter of a cubic yard accepted’.
'Where can I take it then?'
'I don't know, mate, you'd better ask in the office.’
The men in the office were friendly but did not know
the answer. After studying maps and notices they decided
that the nearest tip to accept the load was fifteen miles away
in the lanes beyond Crediton. Michael was in a quandary.
The truck was hired for only two hours. He contacted the
hirers and extended the hire period overnight and set off for
the distant tip. At every convenient phone box he tried to
ring home to explain what had happened. There was no
answer. They were up in the walled garden. As he drove
further and further he imagined the state of mind of the two
at home expecting him back long before.
He also imagined arriving at the distant tip after it had
closed for the night. He began to phone neighbours instead,
and, at last, found one in, who agreed to tell the two waiting
in the garden what had happened. The helpful neighbour had
never been through the gate into the walled garden and it
was with some trepidation that she slowly walked up the
path to the two, now extremely concerned at his lateness.
The lady explained that Michael had telephoned her. Their
minds ran ahead, ‘Had he had an accident? Was he hurt?’ It
was with relief they heard he was all right.
The lorry was wide and as Michael followed the signs
to the tip, the lanes grew narrower and narrower. No chance
of passing here. At last the tip came in sight. He was just in
time and was directed to a section for material containing
branches over 3" thick. He undid the ropes and pressed the
tipping switch. One end of the body rose higher and higher
but the contents were so tightly packed they refused to

138
budge. At last, with a crunch the whole mass descended and
lay on the ground, a rectangular block of branches and
twigs. As the gates were about to shut he set out for home.
He stopped the lorry just short of the loading position,
under the garden wall. William had gone home but Lily
came out to explain that the next load was balanced on the
wall and only needed a push to send it down. As they looked
at it, there was a slithering sound and the whole mass slid
into the road, completely blocking it. As they started to pick
up the debris to load the lorry by hand, it started to rain.
After half an hour the road was cleared, the lorry was loaded
and roped down and they were very, very wet. Michael
parked it for the night and with relief they went in to change,
wash and have a meal.
The next morning, with no time pressure on him, he
drove to the country tip and placed another load next to the
first one. It still retained its shape from the night before and
he then set out to return the truck, collect his car and return
home for the final clear up of the garden. The remaining bits
of cuttings were gradually collected into twenty-three sacks.
They took them in car loads to the local tip where the
smaller quantities were accepted. The bill for the hire of the
tipper truck for 24 hours made Michael whistle when it
came.
Now that Lily had agreed to come to live in the small
house, Michael felt he would like to buy a larger chalet so
that they could take meals in the garden even in spring and
autumn. The best site for this was on the east side of the
garden. From here they would be able to see the whole
garden with the river and boats beyond.
At the moment the site was occupied by five conifer
trees, three of which would have to be removed and the
roots treated. After their previous efforts, this seemed quite a

139
feasible task and they set to work again. Gradually the site
was cleared, the tree roots treated and a base constructed to
support the bearers of the chalet. After looking at many
specimens, they had decided on a handsome model, and
ordered it complete with timber lining. Although they had
arranged with the supplier for it to be transferred to a smaller
lorry for final delivery in the narrow street, the instructions
had not reached the driver.
A policeman, a traffic warden and the lorry driver
called at the house to ask if they were expecting a chalet.
Michael walked with them and found that the huge vehicle
that had brought it was blocking the main street and could
go no further. Finally it was slowly backed out of the town
and driven away to take the chalet to a depot for
transhipment to a smaller lorry.
When it finally arrived some days later, Michael had
gone to Mortonhampstead with Lily, and his son Richard
was staying in the house with his family. This was just as
well. The two men who brought it, could not lift the heavy
sections and it was only with Richard's strength and
experience that they managed to deliver and finally erect it.
Once completed, carpeted and furnished, all agreed it was a
great addition to the garden.
Years before, Lily and Charlie had a log cabin built on
a mobile home base on a beautiful site near Crathes Castle in
Scotland. It was designed to have everything they had ever
wanted, superb views, and a south view with a veranda
overlooking the Balmoral Road. Deer would sometimes look
in the window and otters played in the garden. A heron
would stand on steps in the stream that ran through the
garden. It was their Paradise. Then the oil boom came and
the whole area changed so much that they could no longer
stay there. The memory of that lovely home always

140
remained.
The new chalet had a semi-log finish which Michael
wanted to be compensation to her for the one she had had to
forgo in the past. He started to build six pergolas, three on
each side of the new chalet on which she could grow
climbing roses, wisteria and clematis, which could all be
seen, from the chalet windows.
One Monday evening as Michael's meditation group
was leaving, two of the members paused at the doorway and
turned to him. One asked and the other repeated the same
question.
'Why do you want to get married, Michael?'
It was obvious from their faces that they really wanted to
know. But what exactly was it they wanted to know. A
number of possible answers came to his mind. He knew that
both of them were single and still at the marriageable stage.
Perhaps they thought that at his age, the passions of youth
were quite extinguished. Perhaps they thought that love was
over and mere companionship was all there was left. He
could not disillusion them without involving Lily, which he
had no right to do. An answer came suddenly to his lips.
'Well, I find the feelings are exactly the same as when
you are younger.’
The lady looked a little doubtful. 'I expect he's used to being
married.' she said to the young man.
‘Anyway we all hope you'll be very happy.’ After
they had left, he postponed the washing up while he sat and
thought. Why did he want to get married? There were many
reasons. Love for Lily had grown, as well as appreciation
and admiration. Besides the emotional and logical reasons
for marriage and the fact that they would each rescue an old
age pensioner from loneliness, there was this feeling of
inevitability. How had Grace Gooding expressed it?' ‘A

141
phase destined - matters beyond your control!’ What else
was destined he wondered? They would have to wait and
see. His beloved Nancy had encouraged it and was pleased
for him. He was sure he could make Lily happy and he knew
Charlie was pleased for them both. They agreed so well in
everyway that it would have been absurd not to marry,
especially as she shared his all-embracing ambition to
spread the knowledge of an active Life after Death, which
their partners had demonstrated to them so clearly.
Their secret wedding day was now approaching and
they looked forward to it with pleasurable anticipation. In
the previous week, Lily had had some of her friends to a last
meal at Mortonhampstead. Phyllis Hunt had unexpectedly
produced a beautiful wedding cake she had made, saying,
'As you won't tell us the date, we thought we'd have it
now and make it a celebration in advance.’
On the 7th November another communication came.
Janet Horton who knew nothing about the wedding said that
as she was washing up at lunchtime, Nancy appeared and
asked her to send this message:
'DEAR MICHAEL, FOR YOU BOTH, GOOD
LUCK AND LOVE FOR EVER IN YOUR LIFE
TOGETHER. YOU WILL SEE AND DO SO MUCH.
WITH ALL MY LOVE, NANCY.'
November 14th came at last. As no one knew the date
of the wedding they did not expect any special letters on the
day. However, one card of congratulation did arrive in the
morning. It was from the psychic, Phyllis Hunt, a pleasant
card of congratulation. Perhaps the timing was a fluke they
thought. Inside it they found a note from Phyllis saying,
'I have no recollection of writing what you see on the card
yet I must have done it.' On the bottom of the card in Phyllis'
handwriting were the words,

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 ‘MAY THE JOY AND HAPPINESS YOU FEEL
TODAY, REMAIN WITH YOU YOUR WHOLE LIFE
THROUGH. THE SPIRIT WORLD REJOICES WITH
YOU AND SAYS, ‘GOOD LUCK, GOD BLESS, WE ALL
LOVE YOU. C. AND N.’
They both looked at it and at each other.
'Well you've got to hand it to them,' said Michael,
'they never miss a trick. Phyllis must have written that in
trance.'
They were in an exalted state as they set off for the
wedding. Their friends, the witnesses, were waiting to be
picked up and Michael drove them all to the Registry Office.
It was 47 years since Michael had been married at Caxton
Hall, Westminster, and 52 years since Lily was married at
the Romford Registry Office, before German bombs
demolished it.

Michael and Lily sign the book.

143
 The room they entered was decorated with flowers
and they were impressed with the dignity of the ceremony
and the courtesy of the officials. They felt it really could not
have been bettered as a civil ceremony. In their own eyes,
they were already married. This ceremony was for the
world's recognition of the fact, but it was pleasing that it was
so beautifully carried out and that the officials helped in
every possible way, including taking photographs.
The day had dawned cloudy and dull. Previously it
had rained on and off for three days yet, as they left the
ceremony, the sun was shining from a clear blue sky to add
to their happiness.
There was far too much to do to think of a honeymoon
for the moment, notice had already been given to leave the
Mortonhampstead house by the end of the quarter, and all
Lily's possessions had to be removed. This meant many trips
to and fro to bring plants and smaller items to Topsham.
Many things were destined to go into Michael's sheds and
chalet, at first, and his extensive loft would also have to take
many of the carefully labelled boxes. Finally, on December
11th, the moving van arrived. Lily's loyal friends came to
help, sweeping and cleaning behind the removal men as they
worked, and at lunchtime they set off for Topsham, calling
at the auctioneers on the way to drop off items to be sold.
The next day they returned to Mortonhampstead to
pick up a few remaining items and see that all was fit for the
new tenants. As they were working, Sally, a friend of Lily's
called in. She was delighted to hear of their marriage and
returned later, unexpectedly, bringing a present of beautiful
orchids. This was doubly pleasing, for Lily loved orchids
and, as she accepted them, she realised that another of
Grace's forecasts had come true.
Soon all the wedding cake and letters had gone off

144
and now cards of congratulation began to arrive. Early
Christmas cards and the cards for Lily's birthday followed
until the entire walls of the living room were decorated with
cards. Lily had brought many Christmas decorations and
lights with her and they worked together until they had
transformed the room into a temple of colour and light.
During this time, Michael had little time for reading
but he had a habit of research and usually managed to take
the last half hour before sleep and the first half hour in the
early morning to study something that interested him.
Recently he had been studying the process of aging in
humans, in general, and in himself and Lily in particular.
They were both seventy now, and he would never have
believed that they could still be as active as they were. He
remembered, when he was twenty, arguing that people over
forty were ‘past it,’ yet apart from running for buses, there
was not much that he could have done when younger that he
could not do now, and he now had the time to do most
things better than before. Probably having a purpose in life
helped one to keep a young outlook. He did see some retired
folk strolling slowly about as if their life had no objective,
no purpose but passing the time.
In spite of having had a hard life, Lily was
extraordinarily active. The kitchen, the garden, the house
and writing a stream of letters occupied her day. One day a
man had laid a patio in the garden for them. Lily had not had
time to go and see how he was getting on, but when she did
go to see the result, she realised that he had laid the specially
figured slabs upside down. It was a wet day and luckily the
cement was still setting. In a short time she had them all up,
scraped them and re-laid them, before they were set forever
in the cement.
A friend had said to Michael that up to the age of 40

145
people talked about their plans and their feelings, and after
40 they talked about their symptoms and operations. Judging
by the conversations he heard in the Post Office, this was
partly true, although the dividing age might have gone up to
60, thanks to the National Health Service.
At least, for the present, he and Lily had their health
and energy. When he remarked to his grandson,
'Tim, how is it you get so little done in the day?’ he
received an unexpected answer,
‘I haven't had your training, Granddad, bringing up a
family and going to work. I'll get there one day,'
The fact of no longer being worried about Nancy’s health,
and now being cared for by Lily, must have improved his
general appearance. At a local lecture he had attended, a
lady came up to him and said,
'Is it Mr Evans? You looked so well, I did not
recognise you.’
Similarly, Lily seemed to have a new lease of life,
keeping up with many of her old friends while adjusting to
many new ones. She too, had recovered from the double
strain of worrying over Charlie's illness and suffering
bereavement and many of her friends remarked on her
improved looks.
They had given up having a newspaper, preferring to
follow the news on TV or radio, because they just couldn't
find time to read it when they had one. Lily liked to go with
Michael when he gave talks and he always asked her to look
over articles he had written so that their lives connected at
many points. Whether out driving or in the garden, in the
living room or the bedroom, they had established an easy
intimacy that was far more pleasurable than either of them
had expected
Life continued at a hectic pace. All the sheds were full

146
of boxes to be unpacked and sorted. Michael had now
stopped his postal tapes business except for re-orders from
previous customers but his speaking engagements continued
and tended to increase. He resigned from the conservation
groups to give himself more time at home where Lily was
busy catching up with cooking for Christmas and sending
responses to the hundreds of cards that had arrived. They
still went to church when they could and messages
continued to come. At Dawlish Church, Ann Lambden said
to Michael,
'YOUR DEAR LADY IS STANDING BY YOU,
ALL SMILES. SHE SAYS, ‘YOU DESERVE A LOT
MORE HAPPINESS!’ SHE GIVES THE LADY PINK
ROSES AND SAYS, ‘AND DON'T FORGET MY NAME
IS NANCY.’’
Later in December, when the house was becoming
almost organised, they went again to Dawlish and had a
brief message from Mrs Davies. It said,
‘GREETINGS FROM NANCY AND CHARLIE!
THEY'LL BE THERE AT CHRISTMAS!’
At last Michael and Lily were on their own in the
house with all major decisions made. Tim, the grandson, had
gone to college and would return at Christmas to his own
home. Michael's daughter, Penny, had asked if she could
have the dog, ‘Bracken’, back again. She had bought
Bracken and Holly as puppies and had found the two of
them too much to manage, when the children were small,
and Michael had had her on a long loan. Bracken seemed
happy enough to go back with her sister and with Penny's
children, so Lily's dog, Lucky, now had all the attention of
the household and seemed to thoroughly enjoy it.
Lily worked indefatigably to make Christmas a real
celebration, a compensation for the last two tragic and

147
lonely ones. They took one day off to visit friends in North
Cornwall. There they had a warm welcome from Hannalore
and John, who ran the Bude Spiritualist Church. Hannalore
had decorated the house with an amazing blaze of lights in
the German style and they thoroughly enjoyed the visit. It
was John, who had said to Lily, when they were at Boscastle
in March,
'Young lady you will return!'
They went to the Dawlish Church on 22nd December for a
beautiful service. Afterwards the President, Sid Bishop, gave
the clairvoyance. He came to Lily and Michael and said,
'I HAVE TWO PEOPLE HERE. THEY SAY YOU
KNOW WHO THEY ARE AND THEY WILL BE WITH
YOU AT CHRISTMAS. THEY HAVE THEIR HANDS
ON YOUR SHOULDERS. THEY ARE PLEASED WITH
WHAT HAS HAPPENED AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN.
LOOK OUT FOR A TRANSFER, REMEMBER I SAID
THAT.’
Over the Christmas period, they relaxed. Cooking had
to be done but apart from that and opening presents, they
gloried in the cheerful warm little house with the amazing
display of cards and lights. All through her many travels,
Lily had made friends and every one of the hundreds of
cards of congratulations brought back a memory of the
people and the places she and Charlie had known.
More than anything, she enjoyed the security and
companionship of her new life, especially first thing in the
morning and last thing at night. Early morning tea, made by
whoever got up first, was a leisurely affair, as they sat in the
big double bed and discussed the events of the day before or
the day to come. They opened the post together and Michael
read the contents to her. Eventually, some job would call
him and he would start to get up and she would reluctantly

148
accept his departure and face the tasks of the day ahead.
Michael was very fond of a photograph of Lily, taken
when she was 17. He placed it next to a similar one of
Nancy. Again and again, when he looked at them, he
thought how fortunate he had been to have two such lovely
women trust themselves to him as companions. Obviously,
they had grown older. Time and troubles had left their traces
on the once young faces, yet to him, Nancy had always been
the young woman he had married. He always saw the girl
within, up to the time of her death. He felt the same with the
lovely picture of the young Lily. The girl was still there in
the woman he had married and who now assisted him in
every way she could. The spirit did not seem to grow old,
only the body. It was remarkable how similar in appearance
the two women had been when they were young. The
likeness was not exact, but it was enough for strangers to
comment on. In memory of what the medium had said about
them, they had made a composite picture in one frame, with
Lily and Charlie, Nancy and Michael, all as they were in
younger days, looking out from the photo frame on the
mantelpiece.
Charlie returned again with a message on 12th
January at the Dawlish Church. Pam Beer the medium said,
‘HE'S HERE; SHOWING ME HIS CALLIPERS'.
(Charlie had worn them latterly). 'HE'S COME TO YOU
BOTH, LAUGHING. HE SAYS, 'HAVE YOU GOT SOME
GREEN FLOWERED WALL PAPER?'
'Yes,' said Michael. 'He says, "DON'T USE IT.’
Michael replied, 'I don't like it either. It's in the loft.’
'Charlie says, "YOU'VE GOT SOME STUFF UP THERE.
DON'T NUDGE IT, OR IT'LL COME THROUGH THE
CEILING!”’
Pam continued,

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‘THEY'RE ENJOYING THEMSELVES; THEY'RE
LAUGHING WITH YOU. HE'S WITH A LADY,
SLENDER, A LITTLE TALLER THAN YOU. THERE'S A
SMELL OF BAKING. SHE'S A GOOD COOK. SHE'S
MAKING A GATEAU. NOW SHE IS ICING IT WITH,
‘BEST WISHES’.
For the first time ever, Lily's mother, who had died in
1981, then made herself known. Pam described her and said,
'YOUR MUM'S HERE. NOT PARTICULARLY GENTLE
AND LOVING.'
'Very true,' said Lily.
'SHE SAYS IF SHE HAD HER LIFE OVER AGAIN
SHE WOULD DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY. SHE HAS
LEARNED A LOT. THEY SAY YOU HAVE A LOT OF
WORK TO DO AND WHEN YOU COME OVER THERE
WILL STILL BE A LOT OF WORK TO DO.’
Pam then said:
'I SEE YOU VERY SMARTLY DRESSED, SPIC
AND SPAN, GOING SOMEWHERE IMPORTANT. They
say, ‘THEY’LL BE THERE.’ After she left the platform,
Pam came to them and said,
'I SEE YOU GOING ABROAD!’

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 CHAPTER SIXTEEN

PROPHECIES FULFILLED

A HOLIDAY.

Lily's favourite TV programmes were usually

gardening, cooking, foreign travel or a comedy, in that
order. Michael often saw her looking through her collection
of travel books. Switzerland, where she had gone when she
was only 16, was still her favourite country, and she had all
the postcards, guide books and photographs from those far
off days. Michael had never been abroad apart from going to
India and Burma with the Royal Air Force in the war against
Japan, but he realised that Lily had travelled abroad
frequently over the years and had a longing to return to those
European countries where she had felt so much at home.
One day he came in and said,
'Let's have a holiday and go to Switzerland. You are
the expert, you make the arrangements.'
In a few days the house was full of travel brochures as
Lily methodically set to work, She wanted, above all that
Michael should enjoy his first visit and come to love
Switzerland as she did. After much consideration she
suggested going to Lake Lugano in September and
recommended going by coach on a good package holiday. In
this way they would have few worries and Michael would be
able to see France and Belgium much better than from a
plane or car.
Once the holiday was booked, Lily wrote to the hotel
to check the menus, and she poured over her guidebooks by
the hour. All the memories of that first working visit to
Switzerland came flooding back, there were so many sights

151
and places she wanted Michael to see. She hoped they could
both capture the pleasure and excitement of her first visit in
1936. With her 'Brownie' box camera, she had photographed
the quaint shops and sights of old Lugano. Would any of
them still be there?
Lily had wondered whether Iris Ratsey in South
Africa had again held her New Year Party for the Spirit
People and whether Charlie would come through again with
a message for her. She would never have believed such a
thing possible, but for complete contentment, she now
needed to be in touch with both her husbands. Michael she
needed to see and help, and Charlie, to know he was happy
and approving of her new life.
No letters arrived in January or February. On the 16th
February, John Greene passed on a message from Charlie at
the Dawlish Church. Lily and Michael were sitting together
when John said,
'CHARLIE'S HERE! ARE YOU GOING AWAY ON
HOLIDAY?'
'Yes.'
'HAVE YOU THOUGHT OF ONE PLACE AND
THEN THOUGHT OF ANOTHER?’
‘Yes.’
'HE SAYS, ‘HAVE THE TWO HOLIDAYS! TAKE
THE TWO, AND DON'T HAVE TOO MANY LONG
WALKS.’ THEY WANT YOU TO SIT QUIET AND
TAKE IN THE PEACE AND THE SUNSHINE. CHARLIE
HAS JUST GIVEN THE LADY A BUNCH OF
DAFFODILS AND HE SAYS, 'WILL YOU LOOK AFTER
YOUR KNEES, PLEASE?' AND HE SAYS,
‘I'VE GOT THE LITTLE DOGS.’ HE'S GOT
THREE OF THEM. ‘ARE YOU STILL GETTING
HEADACHES?’

152
 ‘I've had trouble with my eyes', said Lily.
'PLEASE BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR EYES, HAVE
THEM TESTED.’ AS HE GOES HE SAYS, ‘YOU TWO
ARE LIKE DARBY AND JOAN!’
Now the two holidays were a return to Boscastle in
the spring, and the projected holiday in Switzerland in
September. They agreed with Charlie's advice and booked
up for both in spite of the expense.
Charlie had said that Lily was not to worry about
financial matters; they would work out well. This had
proved to be the case. When Charlie was alive her married
woman's pension had been about half of his. When he died,
she received the full widow's pension and could not have
managed without it. Both she and Michael had expected that
when they married her pension would return to the previous
level. When the authorities rang to say she could retain the
full pension after her marriage, they could scarcely believe it
and rang the central office in Newcastle-on-Tyne to check. It
was correct. Lily promptly took over all the catering
expenses of the household and still had some funds over to
buy plants or give away to the various people she cared for.
At last the looked for letter came from Iris Ratsey in
South Africa. It contained a brief message from Charlie, but
this time he spoke of ‘we’. He had come through at her New
Year 'Spirit's Party' to say,
'CHARLIE HERE! CHARLIE! NO NEED FOR
MANY WORDS BUT PLEASED TO SAY TO THOSE
WE HOLD MOST DEAR, LILY AND MICHAEL, WE
ARE DELIGHTED TO SEE THE FULFILMENT OF OUR
DEAREST WISH. WE LOVE TO GUARD THEM AND
SAFEGUARD THEIR WORK FOR THE MASTER.
THANK YOU! I MOVE BACK FOR ANOTHER.
CHARLIE.'

153
 Life still continued to be very busy and they were glad
of the break when they went to Boscastle again. Owing to a
mistake in the booking they could not have the bungalow
where they had been so happy the year before. As it turned
out this was a blessing. Although it was later in the year, the
weather was atrocious, windy, cold and wet. For most of the
time they read or wrote letters but this bungalow had, all
along one side of the living room, an enormous window
facing on to a lawn. Feeling comfortably warm with the
heating on, they amused themselves watching the variety of
birds that came to feed on the food they provided, something
they could not have done from the other bungalow.
All too soon the week was over and they went back to
work at home. The Topsham garden was now beginning to
look very attractive, ready to welcome many expected
guests; some who might prove to be helpful to the work they
were engaged in, as well as old friends who came to see how
they were getting on. As the weather improved they lived
more and more in the garden, installing the word processor
in the chalet.
It proved to be a long hot summer, needing much
watering to keep the plants looking fresh. As the summer
passed they finalised arrangements with their good friends,
Phyllis, and Margaret, who were kindly coming to look after
the house and the dog while they were away. Both of them
seemed to feel that a stay in Topsham was a holiday in itself.
After a hectic rush of last minute packing, the
morning of departure arrived. Last instructions given, the
taxi arrived and they were sent off by their friends, feeling
relieved to get away and excited to be going on their first
foreign holiday together. The coach left for Dover and the
journey continued across the channel by ferry.
Going up to the top deck to get the air and watch the

154
coast slowly disappear, they were joined at the rail by
another couple. Lily was drawn to speak to them and almost
immediately the subject of Spiritualism and the affect it had
had on their lives, was under discussion. By the time Calais
was reached, Lily had promised to write to their new friends
with information they asked for. The friends were going on a
different tour, embracing towns in which they had a special
historical interest.
As they began the journey across France and Belgium
to Basle, Michael was interested in everything. The
excellent French auto routes, the neat Belgian fields and the
more than adequate bedrooms and bathrooms provided in
the hotels. As they crossed the Rhine, Lily was able to show
him the huge Ciba building where she and Charlie had once
been shown round and entertained, ending their tour with a
superb lunch at 'Solitude', a very special eating place among
the lime trees on the Rhine promenade, some years before.
The next morning, early they were warned by their driver
that the day was going to be longer than usual because it
would not be possible to stay where originally planned. So
they set off and eventually came in sight of lovely Lake
Lucerne as the sun was beginning to set. The destination was
Sisikon. Almost at the end of the journey the road was
blocked by a rock fall from the mountain above. There was
nothing for it but to return and drive right around the lake, to
enter Sisikon from the opposite direction. Everyone felt for
the driver, who although never complaining, or showing
strain, must have been feeling very tired, At last they drew
up outside the Tellesplatte Hotel, and it was now quite dark.
The staff had kept dinner ready and everyone went
straight into the dining room to eat.

155
 In Germany with friends en route to Switzerland.

The meal was excellent and then the guests were glad
to be shown to their rooms, The curtains were already drawn
across the windows in the bedroom but Michael was
tempted to pull back specially long ones on one side, and
when he did, there was a double door leading out on to a
handsome balcony, edged with boxes of flowers.
As the moon rose on the scene Lily, now in her
nightclothes, could not be persuaded to leave the balcony
and the fascinating scene. Distant lights fringed the far edge
of the lake and a single light traced the course of the cable
car as it climbed the mountain opposite. The rising moon
illuminated more and more of the faces of the mountain
peaks as they watched an ever-changing scene. The
wonderful magic of Switzerland was still there and the
feeling of belonging arose in Lily again. Sleep now claimed
Michael, but Lily watched on into the night until the rising
sun turned the mountain tops to a rosy pink. Far below she
could see Tell's Chapel, commemorating William Tell, the
Swiss hero.
156
 Michael on the balcony at Tellsplatte.

Next day they journeyed from north to south across

Switzerland to their hotel on Lake Lugano. Just as Lily had
described, the attractive Swiss chalets had given way to
more colourful but plainly styled houses, and plants and
flowers took on a more tropical look,
Three days later, Michael sat on his bed in the Hotel
in Lugano. It was a warm evening and he wore only a T-
shirt and shorts. He had piled up the cushions and pillows
behind him so that he could sit and look out of the wide-
open window at the square below. In the strong evening
sunshine he could see people sitting outside the cafes and
the Albergo on the side of the square. At the far end were
trees and hotel gardens. On his left, he could see the
colourful flags at the entrance hall of the Funicular San
Salvatore, which took passengers up to the top of Monte San
Salvatore, high above them.

157
Entrance to Funicular.

Lily got up from the desk where she had been writing
cards. She picked up some clothes and said. 'I'm going to
have a bath and change for dinner, do you want the
bathroom?'
He did not, and she disappeared into the opulent
bathroom, twice the size of the one they had at home.
Michael knew she enjoyed the luxury of the big marble bath
and would not be out for a while. Their hotel was in
Paradiso, the newer suburb of Lugano, and a busy road
passed along the far end of the square. It was obvious that
this was the Italian part of Switzerland from the light-
hearted way the Alfa Romeos and BMW’s took the corner
out of the square.
Michael fell to thinking about their life together since
their marriage in November, ten months ago. They had, if
158
anything, grown closer since their marriage. They seemed to
be the only ones in the hotel who habitually walked about
hand in hand. Their lives were joined at so many points. At
home, he felt that she was in command as far as the kitchen
and garden was concerned. In other matters she had always
put his wishes first yet was quite firm in expressing her own
feelings when occasion demanded.
He thought over the messages they had had from
Charlie and Nancy. He still felt amazement at what had
happened and at the accuracy of some of the prophecies they
had been given, some prophecies through mediums were
vague or ambiguous but Nancy had said that Lily would
help him with his work and she certainly had done. Since he
had started advertising the Spiritualist Audio Tapes again
they had worked together day after day.
When the post came in the mornings, they sat up in
bed and opened the orders. By the time he had shaved,
breakfast was on the table and Lily was writing the letters
she sent with each of the tapes. While he produced the
copies of the master tapes, she addressed the packets and
they always sent orders away within 24 hours. They had
customers now in England, Australia, Japan, France, Ireland,
Portugal, U.S.A., Scotland and Wales. Lily monitored his
appointments and kept the big diary of domestic and
business affairs as well as his speaking engagements. He had
always asked her to read over his articles and found her
comments sound and to the point. She was excellent at
entertaining when his family came, although always
concerned lest the little dog should get out on to the road
when the children ran in and out of the house.
Charlie and Nancy had said that he and Lily had a lot
of work to do. Had they done enough or was there more to
come? They were certainly busy. He had put aside writing

159
his big book for the moment in order to write an account of
their own experiences. Lily was well into her own
autobiography. But was a bigger breakthrough coming? The
Church of England report on Spiritualism had been
published at last, admitting the truth of human survival of
death and the possibility of spirit communications, but it had
had little impact with the public and few clergymen read it.
His mind turned back to today’s events. They had
been to Como Town, on Lake Como, and Stresa, on Lake
Maggiore in Italy, and had had a superb day.

Michael in the Palace Garden, Isola Bella, on an island in

Lake Maggiore.

He remembered Grace Gooding had said Lily would

return to Italy. Well, she certainly had.
He heard more water running into the bath. Lily

160
would be a little while yet. He had smiled, yesterday, when
Lily had taken him into old Lugano town to try and
discover- if any of the famous shops she had seen in her
youth were still there. After more than fifty years he thought
it seemed unlikely, But he had been wrong. Both the
fantastic cheese shop, Bottega del Formaggio, and
Macelleria Salumeria, the shop with the amazing array of
sausages hanging outside, were still there and thriving,
surrounded now, by fashion shops from New York and
Milan. Lily had also persuaded him to climb the 440 steps at
Morcote, leading to the beautiful church high above Lake
Lugano. The scenery had been breath taking. Coming down
they had missed their way, arrived back at the wrong landing
stage and had to retrace their steps to catch their boat back to
Lugano. Their legs were still recovering from the
unaccustomed exercise.

Our own Expresso Water Taxi. Paradiso to Lugano.

161
 Lily emerged from the bathroom dressed for dinner.
He quickly changed and they went down to the evening
meal. After dinner they strolled slowly down to the lakeside.
They found an empty seat among the flowerbeds and sat
watching the lights appearing everywhere around the lake in
the gathering dusk. The brilliantly lighted pleasure steamers
were making their last calls, depositing passengers at the
landing stage on their left before going round by Villa Ciano
to berth for the night, They sat in the warm air, discussing
the messages and prophecies they had received.
'I remember, a long time ago’, said Michael, 'arguing
that mediums only told you what was already in your mind,
but Charlie and Nancy have demolished all that. They told
us about the future and it has come true, and, as we don't
know our own future, it certainly wasn't taken out of our
minds.’
'What about Grace Gooding,’ said Lily, 'I was in the
depths of despair and she told me things I just couldn't
believe, yet here we are, happily married and we've been to
Italy today.'
'Yes, and you've had the present of orchids she
forecast,’ said Michael, but you haven't grown them yet.'
Well, I've only got a couple, its true, but I suppose it may
come. I'm not going to do it just because of the prophecy. If
it happens, it must happen naturally or you'll never know the
truth of the matter.’
The next day they were going to Verzasca to see a
remote valley where nothing had changed over hundreds of
years, it seemed like a journey back in time. It proved to be
all they had been told. The villagers looked old and wrinkled
and some still carried their supplies in huge V shaped wicker
baskets on their backs.

162
Villager at Verzasca.

Still the same were the original old houses, built in the
local stone, with stone roofs. They looked very attractive
with bright coloured flowers all around but, no doubt, living
in them left much to be desired. In winter snow fell heavily
here and they were shown a church spire with a mark high
up where the snow had reached some years before. It was an
unbelievably beautiful place never to be forgotten and they
were so pleased they had had the opportunity to see it. The
fantastic scenery certainly made Michael understand why
Lily had longed to return to Switzerland.

163
 Back once more in the Hotel for the evening meal,
they were tired but happy. After dinner Lily could not be
prevented from going back to the lake she loved. As it grew
cool, they strolled through Paradiso back to the hotel,
pausing to look at the lighted windows of the jewellers and
pastry shops. Their room had comfortable twin beds, pushed
close together, and Lily was in bed when Michael came out
of the bathroom to her bedside to say, goodnight, ' Happy
day?' he asked,
'You know it’s been’ she smiled. As they kissed, she began
to gently massage his back, a familiar sign that drew him
close to her. After some time they parted, restfully content
side by side.
'Do you think there's something coming up?" he said.
'Charlie said, 'You think you're busy now, but you 'ain't seen
nothing yet.’'
'Go to sleep,' she said, 'whatever will be will be’ and
we will accept it. They both felt it was the end of a perfect
day. They slept peacefully, oblivious of the sounds of late
night revellers in the square.
A few days later Lily and Michael were taking their
cases into the bedroom of the last hotel on the tour. It was
the Casteau Moat Hotel near Mons. They were, sadly, on
their way home, and Tomorrow, would catch the ferry from
Calais to Dover. Michael always took a great interest in each
new room and this one aroused his enthusiasm.
'Look at this,' he said, 'a big electric kettle as well as
sachets of tea, coffee, chocolate and milk and chocolate
biscuits! We've never seen this on the continent before - I
thought you only got this in the U.K. Here's a hair drier, and
what's this? It's an electric trouser press. Look in here, a
luxury shower complete with shower-hat and gel and a
fantastic bath’. He pulled back the bedroom curtains and

164
looked at the view outside.
‘Peaceful, green fields and gardens. What a change
from the slaughter of the Great War all round here.'
Lily was reading a notice. ‘You can have the loan of a
typewriter here’, she said, ‘and it says, ‘If you need anything
else, just ask’, Just think if we could stay here, all meals
provided, how we could get on with our writing. No
shopping, no cooking, just lots of time to do what we
wanted.’
'Well, if you want dinner tonight, I think we had better get
ready,' said Michael, disappearing into the bathroom.
Like everything else in the hotel, the dinner was
beyond expectations in its choice and quality. They knew
they had a long journey to face tomorrow, and an even
longer one from the ferry after that, but the unaccustomed
luxury had brought about a feeling of euphoria and, as they
sat drinking the late night drink, they were contentedly
looking back over the holiday.
'Well we nearly started out with a tragedy', said
Michael. 'Do you remember when that hooting car that was
chasing the coach in Brussels and we thought the police
were after us?’
‘Yes, and he was only telling us that the rear
compartment of the coach was open and cases were falling
out. I was certain my case was last in and would be the first
out, I did think people were kind, offering to whip round for
clothes for me if mine were lost but then that helpful woman
came struggling up, carrying my case and we got it back.'
'Apart from that, it's all been excellent,’ said Michael,'
I thought the city of Trier was beautiful to day, and the
colours in the forests of the Ardennes were stunning.'
'We were lucky in Venice,’ said Lily, 'It wasn’t too
hot or too crowded. It was interesting to see the children

165
going to school on the waterbus. If you hadn't seen it, it
would be difficult to imagine the height of the water, as it
lapped under the front doors into the ground floors of those
lovely buildings. It's tragic to think that one day it could all
disappear beneath the sea. I was so glad that we were able to
see it.'
'To see the beautiful horses and vases being blown at
Murano Glass was another amazing thing,’ Michael mused,
'the Venetian glass we bought will be a nice memento. I am
glad we discovered what that helicopter was doing. Fancy
the lightning striking the Angel on top of the Basilica. I
suppose by helicopter was the only way to replace it. You
could really spend a week at each place and even then not
see half of it.’
The next morning early, they entered the breakfast
room and could hardly take in the array of things to choose
from. So far they had seen nothing like it on their tour.
Every variety of cereal and bread was displayed together
with fresh fruit and huge bowls of fruit salads There were
eggs cooked in every way, fried bacon and cold meats, jams,
honey, marmalade and cheeses to go with toast. It was
difficult to choose and all the time additions were being
made to the dishes on the buffet tables. After several cups of
excellent, coffee they left the table ready to face the day
ahead. Lily had stayed in some of the best hotels in Europe,
but not one had offered the service and luxury this one had
provided and it made a memorable end to the holiday. Soon
they were on board the coach bound for Calais.
Lily was content in the knowledge that the holiday
had been a success and Michael had, for once, relaxed and
enjoyed a new experience. For her, all foreign travel was
exciting, and she now knew that he felt the same. Indeed he
was already talking about their next trip. She remembered

166
that Nancy had said,
'STAY WELL, BE STRONG YOU HAVE A LOT
OF WORK TO DO YET', and Charlie had said,
'YOU MAY THINK YOU'RE BUSY, BUT YOU
AIN'T SEEN NOTHING YET.'
Well, she thought, they now felt ready to face the
work, whatever it was that lay before them. They knew that
Michael had plenty of talks booked besides his church work
and the tapes business. She had her network of
correspondents and her campaign to obtain more time for
discussing the philosophy of Spiritualism on TV and radio.
She felt they were on the edge of something important but
only the future would tell how their work would go. This
holiday had seen more of the prophecies fulfilled and now
they would wait with interest what the future held. Perhaps a
hint of something would be in the pile of correspondence
they knew was awaiting their return.
They were now drawing into the port of Calais. She
abandoned her train of thought to watch the busy scene
outside. They were on the last leg of their journey home.

167
 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

FIFTEEN YEARS ON

The date is now 2006. Since they first met, Lily and
Michael have passed fifteen busy, and mainly, enjoyable
years together. During this time, Charlie and Nancy, their
former spouses, who brought them together, have kept in
regular touch, never interfering but giving encouragement
and advice when needed.
Lily has particularly enjoyed the nineteen holidays
they have had, mainly on the continent, but also on Madeira,
Tenerife and Grand Canaria.

Lily on the patio in Spain.

She is pleased with what Michael has been able to do.

He has given many talks at home and abroad and he and

168
Lily have hosted the Rescue Group, which now meets in
their new home, a bungalow in a sheltered complex. The
members of this group, which has been meeting since the
first Gulf War in 1991, have published three books, and
Michael and Lily have sold over sixteen thousand pound’s
worth of Spiritualist audio tapes, which have gone to many
parts of the world and generated a large correspondence with
interested people in places ranging from New York to
Tokyo.
Lily has survived one serious illness, which hit her the
day before they were due to fly to Portugal on holiday. After
three doctors failed to grasp the real nature of the case, Lily
collapsed. Michael dialed 999, and the Paramedics rushed
her to hospital where she spent seventeen days in Intensive
Care. When she was recovered enough to be moved to a
ward – though still unable to speak as a result of a
tracheotomy, Michael was able to spend the days with her
from 8 a.m. to about 9.30 p.m. on most days. He almost
became one of the ward staff, fetching newspapers and other
items from the hospital shop for patients, and eating in the
hospital restaurant. Finally, just before Christmas, Lily came
home and, after a spell in a wheel chair was able to take up
her usual activities again.
The Rescue Group that now meets at their home
comes together to counsel and assist lost and confused
spirits, helping them to progress and, eventually, meet up
with loved ones that they never thought to see again.
Katherine, who founded the group in her own home, ceased
running it after seven years, when she started a software
business. John, Sheila, Valerie, Judy and Jean, are all trance
mediums, and they allow any spirit in need to speak through
them so that they can be helped. Michael tape records all
that takes place and is usually the one to actually counsel the

169
spirit, so that it understands what has happened to it, and
knows what to do to progress.
To date they have carried out two hundred and ninety
successful rescues as well as having interesting
conversations with more than another four hundred spirits
who had no problems, but were interested to talk and tell
their own stories. Michael’s account of the rescues is to be
published shortly by Con-Psy Publications, as the book,
‘Dead Rescue - The Techniques of Guiding Lost Souls.’

GHOSTS.
Together with John Greene, and a very experienced
friend, Ron Buckle, Michael arranges to visit haunted
houses where people are distressed by what they usually call
‘ghosts’. Here again, the spirit is usually persuaded to move
on and leave the troubled occupants in peace. In this, and all
their rescue work, John’s guide, or spirit friend, ‘Grey
Cloud’, guards all the members of the group and controls
who may be allowed to approach them from the spirit world.
Ron Buckle’s guide takes an active part and often brings the
spirit’s family members who help to persuade the spirit to
progress onwards with them.
On one occasion, when Michael was expecting to be
interviewed on the following day by a television crew, Grey
Cloud contacted a medium friend of theirs in London, who
‘phoned them to pass on his advice about what to say and
what to avoid. This contact by ‘phone with Grey Cloud
through the medium Margaret Dwyer, soon became a
weekly occurrence and, much to the delight of Lily and
Michael, Charlie and Nancy usually joined in, so that
Margaret could pass on messages from them as well.

170
Early Morning Tea
Lily is sitting up in a double bed as Michael brings in
a tray of tea, places it by the bedside, and climbs in beside
her. Lily has already been up, but likes to go back to bed to
listen to the radio news and discuss the affairs of the day.
They have separate bedrooms now and Michael’s room is
full of computers, tape recorders and racks of audiotapes.
Lily’s room is as tidy and neat as Michael’s is the opposite –
a mixture of an office, a library and a bedroom.
Finishing his tea, Michael begins to read aloud, notes
he has made of an unusual visit they had made the day
before, to a remote and isolated house where ‘ghostly’
happenings had occurred. For once Lily had accompanied
the three members of the team as they answered a call for
help from a man who was worried by strange happenings
inside a locked barn. Although an engineer and a complete
non-believer in God, or an afterlife, he simply could not
account for the way copper roofing screws were scattered
over the floor and inside containers each night in the barn.
His wife, who did believe, had actually seen something
inexplicable, and feared the nightly appearances were a
warning to him not to go on to the roof of the barn to do
some repairs that were needed. Fortunately, the team had
managed to move on the three spirits who were amusing
themselves at the owner’s expense, and Michael had a tape
recording of the events, and would send a copy of it to the
couple, to help them understand that no harm had been
intended and all should now be quiet.
Lily listened quietly and then said, ‘Read me some
more of our messages. It’s Sunday, there’s no hurry to get
up.’
‘There are so many’, he replied.

171
 ‘Well read the ones that strike you’, she said, so
Michael began.
‘Here’s one from Mrs. Davies to you, 30th August 1998. She
said:
‘YOU’LL BE DISAPPOINTED. I HAVEN’T GOT
CHARLIE HERE. I HAVE A LADY AND SHE SAYS
HER NAME IS NAN – OH, IT’S MICHAEL’S WIFE. SHE
IS SAYING, ‘HE MUST SLOW UP AND TAKE IT
EASIER – IT’S VERY IMPORTANT. WE KNOW THE
MARVELLOUS WORK YOU HAVE DONE’. She is
giving you a bunch of red roses for all you do and have done
for Michael. ‘HE HAS SO IMPROVED SINCE YOU TWO
CAME TOGETHER. IT HAD TO BE, IT WAS MEANT
TO BE, BUT NOW HE HAS TO TAKE IT EASIER.
CHARLIE HAS GONE WAY UP, AND IS HEALING IN
A GREAT HOSPITAL WHERE HUNDREDS OF
CHILDREN ARE TAKEN. BY THE WAY – WATCH
THE CAR!’
(That very night the car was one of three that were
burgled. There was little damage but some money was
stolen).
‘I don’t think you have slowed up much’ said Lily,
who often wished Michael would just sit in the sun
sometimes and not always feel he should be working.
‘Here’s a domestic one’, he continued, from Marian to
me on 7th June 1999.
‘Nancy is stood there. Have you a shirt that’s fraying
at the collar? There’s a pair of shoes that’s wearing out, a
favorite pair, you don’t want to get rid of. I think it’s about
time you replaced them – there’s a lot more miles to go yet.
Nancy’s with Charlie, in his Scout uniform. They’ve got a
clipboard with a big piece of paper on it and they’ve ticked
about a quarter of the way down on this list that they want

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you to do. How you can get it all fitted in I don’t know.
They’re laughing and saying, ‘YOU DIDN’T BELIEVE US
WHEN WE SAID THERE WAS ALL THIS TO DO.’
I asked, ‘Is Nancy happy?’ Marian replied, ‘She says,
’YES! I CAN KEEP AN EYE ON YOU BUT I HAVEN’T
GOT TO DO ALL THE DAY TO DAY CHORES!’
Here’s one dated 22nd August ’99, about your
previous little dog, Lucky I, who passed on 17th August.
Marian phoned and said, ‘Lucky woke me up last night,
rushing around and barking and looking very pleased.’ Then
there was another one through John Greene,
‘IT’S CHARLIE, HE SAYS, I HAVE GOT THE
DOG. SHE IS VERY HAPPY. YOU WILL FEEL HER
ABOUT AT HOME FOR A LITTLE WHILE.’ THIS IS
VERY EMOTIONAL – THE LOVE OF THE
GENTLEMAN FOR THE DOG.’
‘Yes, I remember’, said Lily. ‘She was always
Charlie’s dog. She grieved for weeks after he passed and
went white round her muzzle.’

Lucky I departed 17.8.99.

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 Here’s a message to you from Margaret Dwyer on 18th
September 2000,
‘CHARLIE IS CONCERNED. HE RUBS HIS
HANDS UP AND DOWN YOUR BACK. HE SAYS YOU
HAVE HAD A VIRAL INFECTION – VIRAL
PNEUMONIA. YOU MUST TAKE THINGS VERY
EASY’.
‘On 30th, after I had had three, ‘Out of Hours,’ doctors
to see you, you collapsed and went into hospital by
ambulance. When you were in Intensive Care, I had this one
from Margaret Dwyer. It said:
‘CHARLIE AND NANCY ARE VERY
DISTRESSED ABOUT LILY. THEY ARE DOING ALL
THEY CAN FOR HER. SHE’S NOT SUFFERING. THEY
HAVE LIFTED HER PARTLY OUT OF HER BODY.
CHARLIE SAYS, ‘LOOK AFTER YOURSELF, OLD
BOY. YOU STILL HAVE A LIFE. WE ARE LOOKING
AFTER HER.’
Here’s one to me through Margaret on 30th December,
after you came home from hospital. ‘CHARLIE SHAKES
YOU BY THE HAND AND SAYS, ‘WHAT A GOOD
THING YOU TWO GOT MARRIED AND YOU COULD
LOOK AFTER LILY’.
“There’s a short one here that interested me. It came
th
on 8 June 2002. Nancy said:
‘YOU’RE NOT COMING OVER YET, BUT I WILL
WELCOME YOU WHEN YOU DO COME. CHARLIE
SENDS LOVE TO LILY’.
That came through Margaret. I must finish in a minute
or we’ll be late, said Michael, but this is a nice one to you
from Mrs. Davies at the Dawlish Church:

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 ‘I’ve got to come to you. I’m pleased you’re both
here. I knew you would be because Charlie told me earlier,
‘HE IS SO PLEASED YOU HAVE RECOVERED,
IT’S A MIRACLE – HE WORKED DAY AND NIGHT TO
HEAL YOU. YOU MUST SLOW DOWN. A LOT OF
PEOPLE NEED YOU. DON’T OVERDO IT! LET THE
DUST STOP WHERE IT IS. HE’S DOING MORE THAN
EVER TO HELP EARTH PEOPLE AND GAIN MORE
KNOWLEDGE.’
‘I like this next one because I was a bit worried about
a visit we were due to pay to a house in Silverton where a
ghost who was violent had scared the tenant out of the
house. Grey Cloud’s young helper, Chippy, said in the
group,
‘DON’T WORRY ABOUT YOUR VISIT TO
SILVERTON. GREY CLOUD WILL BE THERE WITH
THE SPIRITUAL ‘POLICE FORCE.’
As it turned out, the visit was successful and the
tenant was able to return to the house.’
‘Which are your favorite messages?’ said Lily.
‘Oh! I’ve got two. This one is from back in the book,
through Margaret. It’s from Nancy to me:
‘WE SHAN’T BE FIGHTING OVER YOU WHEN
YOU COME OVER – LOVE IS DIFFERENT OVER
HERE!’ and this one from Charlie years ago, from South
Africa by air mail,
‘LILY WILL LOVE IT OVER HERE, THE
PERFECTION SHE WILL FIND.’
Now I really must get up we’ve got to go out later.
You could read the last messages for yourself.’
Michael left to get dressed as Lily scanned the last
pages in the book. Some days before, her beloved and

175
beautiful dog, Lucky II, had had to be put to sleep, as her
heart had simply failed.

Lucky II at teatime.

They were both grieving for her and had been longing
to hear news of her from the other side. It was a great relief
when Margaret rang them to say,
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 ‘NANCY’S HERE. SHE SAYS,‘IT’S ALL RIGHT –
WE’VE GOT HER! SHE SORT OF FLEW OVER AND
DIDN’T EVEN REST, BUT WENT RUNNING.’ Later
they heard from Charlie, who said:
‘I’VE GOT BOTH THE DOGS NOW. THEY’LL BE
PALS FOR ONE ANOTHER.’
‘Oh well’, she thought. ‘At least they’ll both be
happy.’ and started to get up herself.

At the St Gothard Pass.

On Mt. Tiede, Tenerife.

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 BUT WHAT ABOUT ME?
You may feel, dear reader, that although this story was a
happy one for Michael and Lily, it is of no help to you in
your bereavement. You probably have no way of getting in
touch with your departed loved one, to know if they are
happy and are still concerned with you and your life.
This is a real problem unless you are already in touch
with a good medium through whom your loved one can pass
on a message. In any case, communication is not a simple
thing. It’s not just the ability of the medium that matters.
Your loved one is probably around you now, but he or she
may not know anything about mediumship, or how to go
about passing the message they long to send you. However,
they probably watch you each day, and read some of your
thoughts, and if you take a decision to try to make contact,
they can learn what is needed from watching you.
How then, you may ask, can I contact a good
medium?
Mediums are like pianists or singers; they need a
natural gift and then a great deal of training. If there are only
two hundred good mediums in a country, there will be many
more who are less gifted and are still learning and a few who
are charlatans. In the U.K., the U.S.A. and some other
countries, there are Spiritualist Churches that you can attend
for free, apart from making a donation. The mediums that
work here do so as a service to mankind and rarely make a
profit from taking these services where messages are passed
to a number of people in the congregation. Some of the more
well known mediums will give ‘private readings’ at a
church, where, for a fee, you can have a private session with
the medium. These are eagerly sought after and may need to
be booked in advance.
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 Other mediums work privately for money and may be
contacted personally or by ‘phone or letter. Here, ‘word of
mouth’ is the best recommendation, and even with famous
mediums, it may take several ‘sittings’ before you get such
evidence as Lily and Michael had.
You may prefer to watch out for signs in your own
home that your loved one is often with you, and talk to them
as if they were still physically present as they used to be.
If you wish to investigate further, there are Spiritualist
newspapers that contain articles on the subject and also
details of mediums that you could consider. Here, distance
makes no difference, apart from the cost of a ‘phone call.
John Edward, the famous American medium, watched by
tens of millions on TV, had his own long awaited message
from his mother by telephoning a well-known British
medium, Linda Williamson, in England.
Noted centres where you can book a competent
medium in the U.K. are:

The College of Psychic Studies,

16 Queensberry Place,
London, SW7 2EB. Phone: 020 7589 329
www.collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk

The Spiritualist Association of Great Britain,

33 Belgrave Square,
London SW1X 8QB. Phone: 020 7235 3351
www.spiritualistassociation.org.uk

The Arthur Findlay College,

Stansted Hall,
Essex CM24 8UD. Phone: 01279 813 636
www.arthurfindlaycollege.org

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The Greater World Spiritual Centre,
3-5 Conway Street, Fitzrovia,
London, W1T 6BJ. Phone: 020 7436 7555
www.greaterworld.com

All the above have web sites with full details if you enter
their name in a search engine.
Newspapers you can consult in the UK are:

Psychic News, The Coach House,

Stansted Hall, Stansted,
Essex, CM 24 8UD. Phone: 01279 817050
www.psychicnewsbookshop.co.uk

Psychic World, PO Box 14, Greenford,

Middlesex. UB6 OUF. Phone: 020 8903 1993
www.psychicworld.net

These again have their own Web Sites.

When you find a medium with whom you would like
a ‘reading’, you can have the message recorded for you, or
written out to read again later. In this case, a photo or letter
written by hand can help the medium to make the contact
you are hoping for. Don’t be too disappointed if at first you
get a message from a friend or relation you were not
thinking of. At least this will be some evidence for you and
you will have to try again to get the contact you seek. A lady
I go to sends me the reading by Email. She is
Marian Bellfield at: Marian63@btopenworld.com
After years of persecution, Spiritualism is now free to
tell its story. Before 1951, it was actually illegal to act as a
medium in the UK, punishable by three months
imprisonment with hard labour. Now Harrods, the most

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famous store in England, has a resident medium who
charges £70.00 for a sitting and who is booked up three
months in advance. According to the gossip columns, having
ones own ‘Psychic’ is the next trend, after having ones own
personal trainer.
If you have religious doubts about consulting a
medium, Pope Paul II gave permission for Catholics to go to
a medium at a time of bereavement, but would prefer a
priest to be present as well.
The Queen of England, The Queen Mother, Prince
Phillip, the Duchess of Kent and Princess Alexandra, all
consulted the medium Lilian Bailey, after the death of King
George VI.
Former Archbishop, Dr. Cosmo Lang has come back
through a medium to say, ‘How grateful we are to those of
you who give your time and effort to work with mediums to
help people.’
So, it’s your decision! I wish you well and all success
in emerging from the despair, if you have been bereaved -
and all success if you just want to find out the wonderful
truth about what happens when we die, and how those who
truly love are reunited.
THE END

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Recommended reading:
‘Contacting the Spirit World,’ by Linda Williamson,
Piatkus, 1997
‘Lychgate,’ by Air Chief Marshal Lord Dowding, Rider
1945
‘Life After Death,’ by John Edward. Hay House, 2003.
Over 40 million viewers have seen John Edward on TV
in the USA, UK, and Australasia.
‘Voices in the Dark’ by Leslie Flint, Two Worlds
Publishing Company Ltd. PO Box 55307, London SE16
6WW
‘Billy Grows up in Spirit’ by Michael Evans.
(The story of a cockney boy who visited the Rescue
group 14 times over three years, describing the
wonderful life he found in the Spirit World)
Obtainable from Michael Evans 01392 438434
£6.00 in UK plus £3.00 overseas.
‘Dead Rescue’ or ‘The Techniques of Guiding Lost
Souls’ by Michael Evans, published by Con-Psy
Publications, P.O. Box 14, Greenford, UB6 OUF 2007.
£7.95 incl. P&P, or from 01392 438434.

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