This is a sacred time… Moving towards Dark Moon in Gemini, of which there are two this year… The Eclipse only hours away… The harvest is in & the cold winds are rising… The Fae Gate stands invitingly open every which way I turn… I love this time of year.

Memories abound of my life as a childhood Princess, called often Alison Maria Angel Chicken Plum Pek-pek Bramich by my Father. He placed us on 20 acres of farming land at the Northern end of The Great Dividing Range. Our land was always home to many animals, both domestic & wild. We grew our own food, or our neighbours did. The Land & the Animal Kingdom held us in a rhythm that has never truly left me. It was in this magickal place that Mother Earth began showing me things…

The communication between animals was the first discovery I remember, a discovery that felt more like a distant memory than something new. I would look deep into the eyes of the cows or the kangaroos or the dogs or the fish, whatever would hold still long enough to be able to commune with me. I would hold their gaze & think really hard about something then gauge their reaction. I surprised myself with the thoughts I would muster, not always in a good way. Never the less, the animals always reacted, in varying degrees. Dogs spoke back very clearly into my mind (I actually thought it was out loud but their mouths didn’t move- I was totally fascinated). Cows sent me feelings that reminded me of when my Mother gave me a hug. I even tried my Mind-Speak method with bugs!

It was an amazing time. I learned a lot about myself during this process. This was before I began school; I must have been 3-4 years old. I remember thinking about the way the animals reacted to me & wondering what that meant about me. Why did the cow make me feel that way even though we ate cow meat? How could the dog trust me so much? The Animal Kingdom was seeing me as something way more loveable, trustworthy &powerful than I thought could be. So, I tried to raise myself to the challenge! There was one time when we were out assisting with the birthing of a calf & the mother was having a lot of trouble. I thought of how the cows usually made me feel & so I put my hand on her flank & sent that feeling through my hand & into the cow. Her breathing changed & the noises began to subside. Before long the calf was born in a flood of fluid & legs. I will never forget that moment. Since then I have been very comfortable about using Mind-Speak with my cousins from the Animal Kingdom.

It was different with the birds. We had so many birds! My Father had aviaries filled with dozens of rare, probably illegal, Feathered Beings. I was a little older when I started trying to understand what they were always chattering about. I began with learning their calls, both the wild birds & the ones in the aviaries. I don’t know nearly as many any more, but there was a time when I had quite a store of bird calls in my memory bank. Then I started listening to the way they communicated between each other, both within a species & between differing species. Birds are quite the social creatures! They seemed to be always discussing where food was abundant, what predators were around, what the territorial balance was…So organised are the Feathered Beings!

When I was about 6 years old I saw a Silver Crow. I ran about telling everyone I knew but alas, no-one was excited, barley anyone believed me! It was after this that the Fae Gate opened for the first time to let me re-enter the Faery Realms. I was playing in The Creek, an amazing sculpture of white, orange, red & brown clay surrounded by scrub. The bubbling water spoke to me & announced that I was required to make preparations for the King & Queen of the Faery Realm were on their way. Well, you can imagine my excitement! I enlisted the girl from next door to assist with the building of little houses & boats & carriages & gardens & swimming pools & food & drinks for the special guests. We worked whenever we could get away from our chores & family obligations for months on end! The outcome was magnificent, of course, & when the Royalty arrived, we were proclaimed honorary members of the Royal Court & given the title of Princess until further notice. My Dreaming at this time was very much based in the Fae Realm & I spent hours exploring the wonders that lay beyond the Fae Gate.

When I began school, the play area I was drawn to was rows of Pine Trees, probably about 4 rows with 20 trees in each. The trees were magnificent, old, wise Standing People. I would make things out of the carpet of dried pine needles that lay at their feet & occasionally they would speak to me. I would feel the air quiver & that would be my invitation to put my ear against the trunk of nearest tree & listen. Often I would be standing there for quite some time before I was given any message. The main theme behind these messages was about local environmental issues or misuse of animals or abuse of children. I know, heavy right?!! But in my childish way, I did what I could. I told people how bad it was that trees were being cut down to make more houses & that there were already enough trees that had to leave this place because of all the farms. I told people how the Ingham Chicken Factory next to our school had too many chickens in the sheds & they had no feathers, which meant they were really sick. I also stopped telling on the naughty girl because I knew that her life at home was terrifying. Instead I became her friend so she could have sleep overs at my place & not have to be at home as much. She was really mean to me, but I was OK with that. Through all of this, my wise council of Standing People kept me strong & clear & sure about myself.

I was really blessed to be able to grow & learn among the creatures & beings of the Land for they compliment the teachings of the Father & the Mother & the Society. Being in a family with 4 kids, in a time when you could let your kids play on the street, in a place surrounded by friendly neighbours meant that I was often given the freedom to explore the other realms that exist among us without being held back or questioned or ridiculed. This means that these other realms became such a deep part of me, of my perception of this world. In the 30 years that have transpired since this time, I have always had access to these places because I was never told with enough force that they don’t exist.

This is the childhood that I asked to receive me & assist me to become the person that I am to be. Everything that I needed was there for me, in many forms with many messages to guide me along my true path.

Thank you for hearing my truth. There is more to come!

)O(