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 JOURNEY INTO A DIFFERENT DIMENSION
  AN INTERVIEW WITH JUDY GOODMAN ©

      This interview has been prompted by my own personal journey into another dimension. The experience changed my life and left me with a desire to know more, and understand all that I saw. The person that guided me, and several others, on this adventure is Judy Goodman. What I experienced seemed so extraordinary that I felt compelled to share this with other people. Judy is a multi talented, sensitive and compassionate lady who comes from a very small town in Southeast Georgia. She has been described as a spiritual counselor and healer who is known for opening the eyes of many skeptics. With confusion confronting us at every aspect of our lives, she is a breath of fresh air.

     What I observed about Judy's work is that it is always done for others, selflessly, and without reservation. I would like for my interview to serve as an introduction to Judy and a better understanding of "spirit". She is in the process of writing several books. Her audio book, "Journey...The Quest of the Soul ©" was released in Scotland and is already being listened to around the world. She is a true professional from today's working industry and still found time to lecture and honor the special gift she has. My visit with Judy took place at her private home located in Georgia....

      There is a lot of talk about "NDE's" and "out of body". Can you relate my experience during our "journey to the other side" to either of these?

     Not really! While there are some similarities, there is a very unique and special difference. If I may quote a friend of mine I think I can share a brief overview with you. After a similar experience, I asked a lady from Alabama to describe what her trip felt like. I believe the words I said were, "how would you describe this to someone who didn't know what you are talking about?" She described it to me as..."starting out very much like hypnosis and changing." As she said, " I don't know how it changed or when, but I saw and felt XXX (her son who had died recently). Her tears and emotions were very real and could only come from a deeply profound visit with a loved one who is in spirit.

      As I have gotten to know more about your work, I have learned that you have an ability to heal and communicate with spirit. How did you acquire those gifts?

      First of all, let me stress the point that I do not heal, God does. It is true that there is a very special and unique energy that flows through me that has affected many people in many ways. That energy is a gift from God, a gift that places a responsibility and burden on me. That same energy also allows me to help others find their own way in their spiritual journey. My ability to communicate with spirit came with me at the time of my birth.

      You told me that your spiritual knowledge does not come from books, where does it come from?

     Our most valuable knowledge comes from experience! My personal belief system tells me that I have lived more than one life. I believe that I have gained a tremendous amount of knowledge and growth from other lives. During our lifetime, we have good and bad experiences, these situations are the best teachers of knowledge. There are other places in another dimension where I have studied. What I learned, and the places I studied are too complicated to explain in so short a space. I do not read very many of the books that are available today because it complicates the knowledge that came with me at my birth. I believe there are some great books available today and encourage people to read anything that interests them. Books provide us with many different views and opinions and an opportunity to find our own truth.

      Do you feel there is a greater movement in the search for spiritual growth today?

     Yes! History tells us that mankind has always had a desire to grow spiritually. It seems to me that the need is greater today because of the severity of many elements of our existence. By that, I mean that there seems to be more crime, illness, suffering and oppression in general. With that in mind, it is easy to understand why people are ready for answers. Because of the overall desperation in this world, it is also easy for me to understand why some people would allow themselves to be deceived.

      Why do so many people seek you out and come to you for help?

     Two reasons immediately come to mind.. First of all they are hurting, secondly, they want to grow and find their own way. Within the confines of these two reasons is a multitude of needs that knows no barriers. It is not me particularly that the people seek, it is the answers that I can help them find.

     Can you give me an example of what happens when you help someone change their life?

     Recently, while lecturing in St. Louis, there was a gentleman who expressed his complete dismay and distrust of anything he might hear that evening. The lecture lasted seven hours and at the end of the evening, he moved us all to tears as he explained how differently he felt. He said that his life had been changed by what he had learned during the lecture. I might have been the instrument that helped him on his way, the end result is that he wanted to change his life, and he did. Generally speaking, when a person reaches the state that will allow their life to change, the catalyst will be placed in their path. As a person's life begins to change, it will never be according to what I might think is best for them. It is always whatever their particular path dictates. Actually, that makes it a lot easier for me, I don't have the additional burden of knowing just what is best for each person.

     The night that I participated in the group that made the "trip to the other side" I visited my father who had been dead twenty four years. Where and how did you learn to do this for people?

     Allow me to share a few things with you regarding this very special thing I call..."a trip to the other side..."

     First of all, I call it that because I don't know a better way to describe just exactly what happens. During the process, each participant makes an extended out of body trip. This is always accomplished by the direction of, and with the full guidance of God. I never know exactly when the trip(s) will take place and who will be in attendance. I am always told when and where, and ultimately who will participate. From experience, I have learned that not everyone will have an overwhelming trip. Sometimes a person makes the journey as a preparation for something yet to come, with no special memories at the end of the event. During the experience, I am much like a pilot flying an airplane. It seems to be my task to help arrive and return safely and leave the special events to God.

     The knowledge and understanding was given to me before my birth and has always been with me. I did not act on this until I became a mature adult and had achieved a level of responsibility that was in accordance with the task at hand. As an individual, this is not something I could do. I am not special, just obedient to our creator, the one I call God. It is a privilege for me to sit and listen to each person explain what happened to them. I cry and laugh with them and share in the joy of their discoveries. Knowing what I do  

                                                                        S. Waldrop.

Perhaps one of the most difficult things to learn in our lives is the ability to forgive ourselves and others.  I thought you might benefit from another person's experience and what that journey has meant to them.   The following is printed with  permission.                                   

Dear Judy,

     One year ago today I had a one hour telephone session with you. I don’t know if you remember me, but mostly I spoke about the difficulty I was having forgiving my mother for a lot of physical and emotional abuse in my childhood. I was stuck in the anger and though I tried, nothing I did ever seemed to really free me from it.

     You gave me an assignment to write a letter to my mother telling her everything that I needed to say about how she had damaged me as a child and all the problems that it has caused me in my adult life. After taking several days to write it, I placed the letter under my pillow and slept on it, one night, just as you had instructed me to do. The next morning I took it out, said a little prayer and then burned it in the fireplace.

     The following week I repeated this exercise with a letter to my father and then, after another week, with a letter to my inner child. About ten days later the pain and anger started to move out of my system. Mostly in the form of tears--and lots of them. For months it seemed like my daily routine was to come home from work and immediately spend fifteen or twenty minutes crying. Usually, I did not really know what the tears were specifically about--it did not seem to matter. While the tears flowed, a large part of my mind would somehow be held in a calm, safe place. This part of me knew that I could let these intense feelings come up and be released and that I’d be OK.

     The whole thing had been in my own hands all along. I’ve forgiven myself for this now - for both taking a life in battle and for all the pain that refusing to forgive myself for it caused me in this life.  I now believe that it’s OK to want to help someone, but there must be a way to do it that does not require giving up one’s own being in the process; to carry the pain for my mother, I had to stop existing as a person.

     This can’t be what God really intended for anyone. I’ve made myself a promise that I’ll never again in this lifetime, or in any other lifetime, refuse to give myself the support, understanding and forgiveness that I need and deserve from myself.

     In the future, I’ll look for better, higher ways to help; ways that don’t require me to deny my own needs and expression. I realize now that my own soul, and its need for joy and growth are just as important as anyone else’s.

     Overall, I feel better now than at any other time in my life. I know that I’ll never again be as depressed as I was for such a long time.  It’s interesting though that after forgiving and letting this go, I now find that I don’t know what I really want to do with myself or with my life. Until now my life was always stuck in the pain and anger of my childhood and in trying to free myself from it. Now I feel as though I’m free to move forward, but I’m not sure how to do it or what direction to go in. It’s rather strange to feel so much better, but also be so confused about what to do at the same time.

     Judy, there’s something you told me in that session that I’m still wondering about: you said that as a soul, I am at a threshold. I wish I’d thought to ask you to explain what you meant at the time, but I did not. I would not even ask a regular person this because I know you talk to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people in the course of a year, but do you have any memory of what you might have meant by this? It’s understandable if you don’t, I just thought I’d ask on the chance that along with some of your other skills you may have a some sort of super duper memory as well. It’s remained in the back of my mind since last year and I’m still curious about it...

     I see on your web site that you’re going to be in Portland in July, and I hope to participate in some of the things you’ll be offering here then.

     Judy, I have more gratitude and respect for you than for anyone who has ever touched my life. Without your help, I’d still be right where I was a year ago: stuck in the anger and the pain.  I feel a sense of accomplishment for having moved a little further along my way--thank you for helping me do it. 

                                                                                                                                                                                      Carolyn                              

   My life's purpose... 

    Not all recurring themes, in our lives, present challenges.  For some of us, these recurring themes are very good in nature and allow us to live life to it's fullest.  Having said this; some of the recurring themes of our lives can be indications of what we chose for our life's purpose - 'soul contract.'  Before you face the task of listing those persistent recurring themes that are sometimes painful and represent our greatest challenges; it is a good idea to list some of the strong, positive characteristics of your life.  You will probably want to create a journal to do this work as it can be important to go back over this information from time to time. 

     Once you identify the challenging themes of your life you will want to identify their  point of beginning.  Is this something that happened early in your life?  Is this a pattern that has been imprinted, on you, by another person.  In other words, do you drink too much because your parent drank a lot and you thought that was the way things were supposed to be.  At some point you will want to take responsibility for your own behavioral patterns.    

      As you are being honest with yourself, you will see a pattern developing, this should lead you to identify those things you wanted to learn in this life.  Once in a while we will see a habit or routine that we are unable to find it's point of beginning.  If that is the case you may want to consider that it is a 'past life carryover.'  In other words, what if there was something in your past life that you did not complete to your soul's satisfaction; what if you had caused unspeakable pain and suffering to another person.  You may have come into this life with an agenda that came from one of your past lives.  Sometimes we refer to this as 'karma' or a debt owed.

      Keep working through these scenarios until you reduce it down to a few words.  Usually that will become something like - unconditional love, self esteem, medical cure for humanity, invention to save lives, spiritual teacher, ability to forgive self and others, write a book, etc.  Once you bring it down to this level, look back over your life and the recurring themes to see if you are learning the task.  Until you get the lesson, those situations will continue to occur.  We attract that which we need.  Until the lessons of your life have been learned you will attract anything or anyone that will put you to task and help you accomplish your life's purpose.

      In most case a soul will have chosen three things to learn in this lifetime.  Once in a while a truly ambitious soul will have taken on a fourth agenda.  Even though we make these choices for ourselves, we continue to have free will in all things and at all times.  You will always be free to decide that something is more difficult than you feel you can work through.  If it is a karmic debt, you can still choose not to complete the task, but; you will find another place in time to honor any indebtedness you owe to another soul, or souls.

      So, what is your life's purpose and how is it working for you so far?  What could I do for myself if I understood the challenge?

  Judy Goodman