Nicola Mannering

My friend, Debby, came with us to the Hopi. She would come sometimes in the evenings to the channellings with White Cloud. William would arrive, barefooted, all smiles, with some news of what White Cloud had recently told him, and so we would gather round my room, and chat for a while. Then William would settle on his cushion and prepare to leave the body. We would close our eyes, and White Cloud would arrive with a sharp intake of breath. Suddenly, there he was, in William’s body! It was quite uncanny. His expression – even his eyes – would change! We would be greeted warmly with, “Wahonay, wahonay!” It was always such a joy to see him!

We would ask questions about certain personal challenges, or about absent loved ones. He would make jokes and tell us about random things. He would explain patiently to us how the plants and rocks all knew us, and were aware – that they are brothers and sisters, and that we always need to ask permission to pick, or take them. He spoke of the four-legged people, and the two-winged people, also our brothers. And of Grandfather Sun, and Grandmother Moon, also our relatives. Then he would talk about the Hopi crystal, and how it could be returned. Or he would just look at us with a long, quizzical gaze, and with plenty of love. We never minded if there was no talking. It was simply a joy to sit together!

So, one day, close to the time we were planning to leave for the Hopi, I told Debby of our plans – where we would go after the crystal had been returned – the places we hoped to visit – Sedona, the Grand Canyon, New Mexico, and so on. “Oh, “ she exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. “All places I wanted to visit two years ago!” She had been there with her son, but needed to return earlier than expected because her beloved sister had fallen ill. So I said, “Why don’t you come with us?” At that stage, our little band was just William, Little Pocket, and myself. Soon before we were to leave, William became unwell, and was unable to come, much to our great disappointment, and so it remained just three.

Debby was a godsend! She was to drive us everywhere, tirelessly. She and Little Pocket were an indefatigable team. I was simply the passenger. In the month we spent in the United States, we covered much ground and had many, very beautiful – extraordinary, even – experiences. Debby remains a close and loyal friend. She is wise and generous, and open to life’s experiences in a most remarkable way. And she is simply unstoppable!

Little Pocket insisted that she come to America with me to return the crystal to the Hopi People. That was just over two years ago. She was eighteen then. “I can carry the bags and look after you, Mum.” And she did! She also became chief navigator, because she was unaccountably fast at deciphering the complicated roadmap we took everywhere. And she has an impeccable memory. “We turned left here, so we need to make a right, and turn off at that roundabout,” she would say definitively, and she was always right! She is sharp as a pin!

And she made me laugh in the most inappropriate places, and not just a little, but until my sides almost split! It was great medicine.