The following are interviews with our keynote and guest presenters from April 2008, which appeared in Edge Life magazine:

ECHO BODINE
What is the key idea you want to share with those who attend your talk? I really want to get the message to people that they too have psychic abilities and that these can be used as a tool to help them in their everyday lives. Being aware of one's psychic abilities doesn't mean that you will become a professional psychic someday. These are gifts to use as you please. I also want to demystify psychic abilities. I want to give clear, simple explanations of what these gifts are and take away the mystery surrounding them.

Why is it important that people hear what you have to say on this topic? It's important for people to attend this talk, because they aren't getting the straight scoop about psychic abilities from their churches or the media. People have a right to fully understand what these gifts are.

What moment in your life was most instrumental in leading you to where you are now as a spiritual leader? It was when I was 17 years old and went to a psychic for a reading. We had an unusual experience in my family that led us to see a psychic, and she was the one who told me I was born with many psychic abilities and that I would someday be a famous psychic and healer, that I would travel around the world teaching others how to develop their abilities, that I would write books, and be on radio and television. I didn't believe the woman at first, but as you can see, the plan unfolded exactly like that.

Why is it important for you, personally, to take part in events like Fargo Holistic Expo? I love teaching people about these abilities. I worry that people in the smaller cities and towns aren't getting the information that they need. I love going to places like Des Moines, Fargo, Omaha, etc., and reaching the people there. There is a great thirst in people right now for spiritual understanding and I'm very happy to be part of quenching that thirst.

What messages from Spirit have you received recently that may be of interest to our readers? There are a couple of thoughts that come to mind. One of the messages that the spirits keep drilling in my head is to live one day at a time. We are getting too far ahead of ourselves, always concentrating on 2012. They keep telling us to get back to today and get used to the new energy that's here on earth now. Times are definitely changing, more than I've ever felt. It's like we're moving into new territory, and yet, we don't know what that looks like.

The other night in meditation, the guides said that life now is a little bit like it felt for the pilgrims. We have been busy purging the old in the last few months of 2007, and we've been feeling this new energy coming, but now that it's here, we're not sure what to do with it. What do we want to build for our lives? What do we want our new lives to look like? Imagine the Pilgrims arriving at a new destination. Once they got here, they had to figure out what they wanted their new home to look like. What kind of towns did they want to build? That's where we're at right now.

The other thing that comes to mind is to heal our self-worth so that we reach high when creating our new lives. Yes, our thoughts are very powerful and we can create amazing things with them, but if we are still struggling with low self-worth, we won't build much for ourselves.

HEALING ON THE PRAIRIE
A panel discussion with some of Fargo-Moorhead's top holistic practitioners, with moderator Troy Parkinson

The Fargo Holistic Expo is in it's second year now. What makes you excited about this year's expo? I believe this year's expo is going to be great. The people of Fargo-Moorhead and the surrounding communities responded well to last year's expo, and I know a lot of people who are looking forward for this year's event. What excites me most about this year's expo is Stephen Simon's visit on April 18. Being a filmmaker myself, Stephen has a been a huge inspiration to me over the years, and having him come to our community to share his wisdom will be wonderful. But my other favorite part about the weekend is knowing that more people from our community will have the opportunity to educate themselves on all the holistic options available in our area.

You are moderating a panel called Healing on the Prairie. Can you tell us what the panel will be discussing? Fargo-Moorhead and the surrounding area has a wonderful group of holistic practitioners, and the panel will be discussing holistic approaches to health and healing. The panel will include a Reiki Master, hypnotherapist, a chiropractor, acupuncturist, massage/craniosacral therapist, a personal trainer and a biofeedback specialist.

The panel will not only share about what they do, but they will also offer "mini" sessions to a few people in the audience. It's a discussion that will highlight a nice variety of healing modalities for the spirit, mind and body.

Why is it important that people hear what you have to say on this topic? I believe a healing panel is an important addition to the expo offerings, as it helps educate the community on what alternative options for healing exist in the Fargo-Moorhead area. The medical model has its place, but it's refreshing to know their are other options available. Education is the key and this panel's goal is to help demystify alternative forms of healing.

SUSAN JUST
What is the key idea you want to share with those who attend your talk? I'd like to help people and souls wake up. So often we live our lives in a trance: fixated on the things we think we should do or immobilized by the negative things we believe about ourselves. When people become de-hypnotized, they can safely and creatively transcend their past and live a rewarding life today.
 
Why is it important that people hear what you have to say on this topic? I'm a deconstructionist. Too often people holistically combine body, spirit and mind, but if one or several components are not healthy or are not playing nice, life can be a struggle. But, I don't want to break things down to make them break. I want to deconstruct so we can retain what is good and useful, so then we can build it back up more resilient, more beautiful. This is possible through soul regressions, past-life regressions and even current life regressions. We can get to the fears, misperceptions and limiting beliefs so that all aspects of a person's existence can be expressed. In reality, deconstructionism is a safe mechanism for evolutionary change or creativity. Without it, we wouldn't be able to reflect, we wouldn't be able to transcend.
 
What moment in your life was most instrumental in leading you to where you are now as a healing leader? I truly became galvanized when I read the book Journey of Souls by Michael Newton. I had an epiphany that I was here to help heal souls -- but, more importantly, to heal the relationship between the soul and the human. In fact, there's a story Mr. Newton relates about a child soul who must throw itself out a moving carriage so it could share the challenges and rewards with its parent souls. And I was so horrified and angry. HOW is it possible for a soul to come into this life and want to harm a human body? To do it mistakenly is forgivable, but to intend harm? I thought it was an honor for all souls to be in human bodies. Our physical state allows the blessings and challenges of experiences and emotions. In fact, every soul knows that it's easy to be good when all you know is good, but to be good after you've been bad, that's true transcendence. So I was outraged, and I envisioned a holy war, but a holy war on the spiritual field that'd allow humans to break free, to cast out the parasitic souls who are using our bodies, who are using our experiences and often causing us harm.

But then I thought and thought and thought. And I realized that sometimes the equation works against the soul, sometimes it works against the ego, sometimes against the body. The answer is in the middle: the human experience in this life is added to the soul, and that by working together, creating a healthy symbiosis, we can help deconstruct the patterns of pain, and learn to heal the greater cycles of human and soul evolution. In many ways, I am here to help people live many lives in this lifetime.
 
Why is it important for you, personally, to take part in events like Fargo Holistic Expo? Being from North Dakota, I know that the people here are good, caring and warm. They also support your right to believe whatever you want, even if they don't completely believe it themselves. They are that strong and secure in themselves, they are so interested in fairness. And I think it's great that this community supports events like the Fargo Holistic Expo. They know there isn't a single path to truth. Truth is like a rainbow, and there are many views, many ideas, and the synergy of all creates the energy to evolve. It's this freedom of expression, and every individual's willingness to play and entertain new ideas, that will help all of us lead more rewarding, more authentic lives -- whatever we decide.

CAROL LOWELL
What is the key idea you want to share with those who attend your talk? At the Fargo Holistic Expo, I am going to talk about ghosts, spirits and life after death. People often have misconceptions about ghosts, dying and heaven. They are often thought to be evil or a grand sinner and therefore deserve to be stuck in "limbo" or "purgatory." There are good ghosts and mean ghosts (just as there are good people and bad people). Many ghosts are confused and simply don't know what to do, especially if they died suddenly, have had mental confusion or were on a lot of medication prior to their death. People with Alzheimer's and mentally ill people are good examples of this, although they are not in the majority. I would like to help clear up any confusion or misconceptions. I have helped hundreds of ghosts during the past 16 years to cross into the light, which I also refer to as heaven.  

Helping ghosts cross over is a very rewarding experience. Everyone has a different reason for why they have decided not to cross over. Many of them have heavy burdens. Sometimes they are afraid of people who have harmed them, those who may already be on the other side. Some have religious beliefs that hold them back. Each ghost I have helped has had their own unique story.
 
What moment in your life was most instrumental in leading you to where you are now as a spiritual leader? Years ago when my children were little, slight experiences they would have or would talk about triggered ideas and memories that I had as a child. I had hopes that there was more to life, the world and spirituality than what I was experiencing, so I began reading books written by authors such as Ruth Montgomery and Edgar Cayce. They both talked about communication with deceased spirits and psychic abilities.

One day I was talking to one of my girlfriends about these thoughts, and she suggested I call a psychic named Echo Bodine for a reading. A few months went by and finally I made the call. Echo only knew my first name. Sitting in her office, she told me things about myself that I didn't have words for in describing my life and my feelings -- many things no one could have known. I was blown away!

Before I left Echo's office, I noticed on the wall that she was advertising a Psychic Development Class to help discover your spiritual gifts. I asked her if she thought this was something I could learn, and she said yes, that anyone interested in the subject is be able to develop their gifts. I left her office, called my sister Joanie and we signed up for classes. By about the third or fourth class, spirits were coming to me

Why is it important for you, personally, to take part in events like Fargo Holistic Expo? There are so many people who feel as I did way back when: an empty longing for something, but not knowing what that something is. Many people don't have the opportunity to meet with a psychic, healer and teacher. I am fortunate to be able to share my personal experiences and spiritual journey with them. Talking with someone in person and meeting them face-to-face is so valuable. Many gifted psychics, healers and teachers will be offering their expertise and sharing many different holistic modalities. I am excited be a part of this wonderful group. We have such a great time laughing, talking and meeting many wonderful new people. I know it will be a wonderful weekend.

STEPHEN SIMON
What can attendees expect to hear when they gather at the Fargo Theatre Friday night? This is an historic time in the history of the film industry. The old ways of making and distributing movies no longer work. The Hollywood financial model is irretrievably shattered, and there will be new ways to distribute films in the future. So I will be talking about where the industry has been, where it is today and where I think it may be going.

Speak briefly on the topic, "Light in the Darkness: Uplifting Films in a Violent Film World." I will speak directly about the films nominated for the Academy Awards this year -- No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood, Michael Clayton, Atonement and Juno. Four of the five were very dark films, three of the five were extremely violent films. If you look at the films nominated for Academy Awards this year, people just didn't care. The proof of that is the Academy Awards show this year was the lowest-rated in its history. There were a million fewer viewers than the previously least-watched show. That's because people don't care about these dark, violent, grim movies.

As a mentor of young filmmakers through Spiritual Cinema Circle, I am certain that you will have a message for young filmmakers and film students. What will you like them to take away from your event? It's about looking at film from an entirely different standpoint today. It's not about going to Hollywood and make Hollywood films, because by the time you get there, Hollywood won't be there. It's about understanding that there's a whole new way now to make and distribute movies.

What is your vision of Hollywood in 10 to 15 years? In 10 to 15 years, there will probably be half the movie theaters that there are today, or less. There will be no video stores. The movies that Hollywood makes at that point will probably be the big, 150-to-200 million-dollar event movies that they're making now. The smaller and even middle-budget films will completely disappear from the Hollywood slate. Films such as these will go directly to home viewing. Most films will not play in theaters. You can't do it anymore. The finances no longer support that. People are staying away from the theaters in droves. Hollywood sold 200 million fewer tickets last year than they did five years ago.

For someone who has grown up in the film industry as you have, is it sad to see the demise of Hollywood? It's incredibly sad. It's a very melancholy experience for me to watch the destruction of an industry that I love so much by the corporate mentality that took it over 15 years ago. That is what has killed it. You can't have a left-brain person making right-brain decisions, and you can't have a right-brain person making left-brain decisions. The huge multinational corporations took over Hollywood and installed MBAs (business executives) as the managers, and MBAs have no understanding of creativity or of the audience. They've just destroyed the film industry.

For the average people sitting at home, what are they to do in response to the changes you are talking about? There is a lot that people can do. They can make it very clear to their local theater that they don't plan to show up anymore if they play these dark, ugly, violent films. They're going to stay home. They can support positive films, and filmmakers who are making positive films, by renting through Netflix, choosing positive films through your cable's video on demand, or becoming subscribers of Spiritual Cinema Circle or Earth Cinema Circle, and by encouraging theaters to no longer show dark, violent films. Don't rent those films. Don't watch them when they're on cable. By doing that, you're sending a message that this is not the type of entertainment that people are looking for.

One of the exciting things, and it is challenging for us, is that we don't really know what the future is going to look like or what's going to happen. We know the current system is broken and that it cannot be fixed. We know it's over. Hollywood knows that the way they have been doing things is over. They know they're in desperate trouble. They do not know what to do to fix it, to change it. And the DVD business also has gone to hell in the last couple years.

I'll be doing a talk for film students also when I'm in Fargo, and what I'm going to tell them is this: You now have an historic opportunity. You can help figure out what the new way is going to be. Somebody came up with a wonderful phrase: the swing between worlds. That's where we are now. The old one has died. The new one has not yet been born. It's going to be up to the people of the younger generation to figure out what the new thing is going to look like -- and how it's going to get done.

LYNN YOUNG
You will be speaking on "A Life of Excellence." What do you mean by this? I feel that a lot of people have lost something in their lives. There is something missing in the scheme of the journey. We all have some kind of target we are pointing our fingers at, but between here and there, there is a blank part. It's like a record that skips and keeps going, and then it skips again. And what happens is, we keep focusing on the "missed" spots, the parts that aren't as fulfilling. What I want to do as a speaker and a channel for "G" is to show how people can really live a life of excellence in every moment of their life.

You can't settle. You can't sit back and put your life on "pause" just because somebody else isn't happy or something else is going wrong. We let life get in the way, we let the journey get in the way and we let our jobs get in the way. We think we are everything that is outside of us. In reality, there is a hidden part of us that we're not aware of.

As a teacher and someone who has been on this road a long time, it is clear that we're not listening to the ancient ones who are telling us who we are and why we're here and what our reason for being is. We flip the switch and turn off our hearts and the spirit within and don't follow through in allowing our spirit to be. Many teachers have come and gone over the ages. The greatest message is that we're a part of that ancient knowledge and ancient knowing. What they tell us is, "Be your most. Be your best. And stop settling for less than you are." Love what you live, and live what you love -- and then life is amazing.

What separates people who truly live on purpose and from their hearts from those who think they are doing that, but they're not there? We're taught in our society that you have to hit rock bottom before you really learn to dig yourself out and never go back. That's a poor message to send to the universe, but that's what we hear. And some people have it in their minds that things aren't too bad, so there's no need to do more than they're doing. What it comes down to is making the decision. Just choose life. That's what "G" talks about. He says, "Choose life, and choose it all, and that's what you'll get." A woman had come to "G" for a healing. She was laying there and said, "Is there anything you want to say to me, 'G'?"
"G" said, "You need to choose."
"Choose what, 'G'?"
"You need to choose life."
And she said, "I thought I did."
"G" said, "Did you?"
She had stage 4 breast cancer. She said, "I choose life. I choose life." She later went in for surgery, and stage 4 went down to stage 1. And now she is cancer free. One of the things "G" keeps stressing is that we're not choosing. We're letting life choose for us. We're looking at things around us and letting those things choose for us. Instead of just following the traffic and letting it direct us, it is important that we put our signal on and make an intentional turn and choose to go that way.

Tell me about your pre-Expo event Friday afternoon on Mystery Schools. There are thousands and thousands of years of knowledge locked away inside of us. But for most of us, this knowledge is dormant and asleep within us. What "G" will be talking about are the hidden layers within us, under the superficial, human equation, and our ability to retrieve that deep inner spiritual knowing. It's really about unlocking the hidden potential -- that God core -- that's really deep inside of us.