Do you sometimes feel as though there are two of you? There’s the authentic you, who remembers his/her past lives and views life from that perspective. Then there’s the other you who has to keep that part of your life silent in order to fit in with your mainstream friends, family or business associates. Let’s face it. Not everyone believes in reincarnation and those who don’t tend to think that those who do are a little whacked out. To avoid their blank stares or tsk tsks, you don’t share that part of your life, even though inside you are bursting at the seams to discuss this very important aspect of who you are.

Well, you’re not alone. I have encountered this “problem” for all of my professional career. Every once in awhile I will test the waters, so to speak, by mentioning some aspect of my work at a family dinner. I’m usually met with a silence that is so awkward, I quickly change the topic in an effort to put everyone at ease. When this happens, I often question my karmic role in my biological family. For someone like me who lives, breathes, and embraces the tenets of Universal Laws it can be difficult to separate that from the interests of my more mainstream friends and family. Over the years, I’ve come to accept this as par for the course, but that doesn’t mean I don’t occasionally fall into a melancholy, yearning to be with “my people.”

Ironically, this concept of “my people” was initiated by my children when they were young. I would go off to the A.R.E. or Unity, attend conferences or lead them, get an office and see clients there, etc. When I would leave to pursue those ventures, my children would say–“Oh mom is going to be with “her people.” So they knew, even at a young age, that there was some sort of a differentiation between one aspect of my life that they did not share, other than as dispassionate observers. While I have been able to co-exist in this type of environment, and while I dearly love my family beyond words, there are times when I yearn to live my daily life surrounded by “my people.” These are the people with whom I can be my authentic self. People that I don’t need to edit what I say. If I use “metaphysiical terminology” in our conversation, they know exactly what I’m talking about. I don’t have to water it down or explain it, or struggle to find a way around it. There are times I daydream about what my life would be like if I were actually living with individuals who were interested and supported my work. But that’s not my lot in this life and for karmic reasons I understand why.

For those of you who find yourselves in a similar dilemma, may I suggest a few things. First, it is important to anchor yourself with an organization that attracts like-minded people. The A.R.E. and Unity are the two I gravitated to, as well as The Monroe Institute and earlier on, The Theosophical Society. There are many smaller groups where you’ll find your people as well. Many of these are on Facebook, but I would caution you about that aspect of outreach, as some of those groups are ego-driven and may not satisfy your need for genuine friendship and enlightening conversation.

Perhaps someday, the majority of people in this country will believe in reincarnation. Until then there are enough of us out there for you to connect with.