Julie Hilsen (00:01.433)
Hello dear friends and welcome to another episode of Life of Love, where we gather each week to bring forth messages to help anyone who’s tuning in. And we’re so grateful for everyone that shares and listens to these messages, but it’s our honor to bring forth some inspiration, some insight, some curiosity. And today’s a very curious day because…

I get to pick the brain of Laurie Parente and she’s coming to us from Canada and she has this expertise to teach people how to connect with their loved ones who are on the other side. And I just love her message and the empowerment of having your team. And I know I’ve benefited from asking and connecting. So I’m just really excited to hear her experiences and maybe she’ll share some stories of.

of clients that have shared their miraculous stories just to give people, there’s so many things. I was thinking about this today and I don’t mean to go on a tangent, but I’m walking my dog and she’s absorbing the land. She is sniffing every blade of grass, every pine straw needle. And I’m just like, I was to get a little bit frustrated because I was like, come on, let’s…

you know, let’s get on with our walk. I want to keep moving, especially in the morning before my coffee, I got to keep moving. But I stopped and I said, this is wonderful. this, her ability to get so much information from her nose that I’m totally oblivious to is just a small example of the wonder that’s all around me that I’m not picking up on, but it’s around me all the time. And

And I was like, thank you, Sydney, that’s my dog. I’m like, thank you for reminding me that there’s wonder and things that I can’t see, that I can’t tune into, but they’re there. And so this is just another example of what’s around us that we, know, maybe we’ve learned to ignore it because it hasn’t been nurtured, but Lori, thank you for being on Life of Love. I’m so excited to dive into this topic with you.

The Power of Connecting with Loved Ones

Laurie (02:09.666)
Thank you so much. so happy to be here.

Julie Hilsen (02:12.543)
Well, yeah, I mean, I was just talking to my mom on the way home and she has to say goodbye to a friend, a classmate. And although she’s lived a full life, it’s like so many people are passing right now. And this message is so pertinent to so many lives. even if you haven’t lost somebody recently, you miss somebody. Like you miss your grandparent or you…

You wonder about what’s going on on the other side and how they’re doing. And so I really appreciate your expertise and you’ve been doing this for a long time, right? Like over 20 years, I want to say.

Laurie (02:56.126)
Yes, I mean, I was very connected as a child and then kind of went through that phase where I didn’t want to be connected or I thought it was crazy or other people thought it was crazy and then coming back to it later in life. But as I was saying before, I believe we’re all capable of connecting. And once we have those connections, it really changes how we live our lives. It changes how we view life and death and it changes.

Just our perspective on so many things, when we can tune in and get a clear message from a loved one, it answers so many questions for us beyond that message.

Julie Hilsen (03:34.031)
Yes, it sure does. And it brings you peace. I have make it regular. talked to my grandma, I talked to my husband’s mom, she passed away in 2020. And then my husband’s father passed away a year ago. And there’ll be things I just want to ask about Mitch or ask about, you know, we’re trying to take care of the house and Hilton head for them. And, you know,

the families. So there’s things that need to get done. like, well, what should we do? And I always get a sign. I always get a sign. And it’s never how I think it’s going to be, but I always get a sign. I mean, can you tell us, I did sign up on your website and you have a class, but I haven’t, I’ve had a day and I haven’t had a chance to look at it, but can you give insight as to how you’re helping people and some things that you’ve seen since you’re opening up to this and sharing?

Receiving Messages From the Other Side

Laurie (04:33.934)
So.

I I mean, it’s kind of hard to put it into just one little package, but I think the most important thing is knowing that we’re not alone on this journey, knowing that we have an entire team. And the way that it came through me one time when I was in meditation was it’s like you’re in a room and you’re at a big, huge, long board table and you’ve got a headlamp and all you can see is all the stuff that you need to do in front of you. Say there’s like files of…

relationships and work and you know home and all the things you have on your plate and it’s like someone comes in to the room and flips the lights and you look up and you see this entire team of loved ones and angels and and guides and mentors and teachers and they’re at this table just waiting for you to turn on the light and see them

And then they all start, know, can I have that file? Can I have that file? How can I help you with this file? Like they’re not here to tell us what to do or how to be, they’re here to help us. So when we can tune into what it is that we want and what it is we want to feel, then we can ask for help. And you’re right, the answers that come are never what we’re expecting, right? So it’s to go into it with that open heart and that open…

that openness beyond expectations. And so when I first started really connecting with my team, would have that vision of going to that boardroom table and just saying, who wants to help me today or who wants to teach me today or where are we going today? And just opening up to that knowledge that we’re never alone. We have these entire teams here to help us.

Julie Hilsen (06:13.965)
Hmm. That’s it’s really fun. It’s really fun to to put yourself in that and envision that. So if let’s say you ask that and how does your team, I know you said it’s variable, but if you have like an open general who wants to help me, what are some ways that you have seen? Because I’ll get messages through song.

songs on the radio, or I’ll see repeating numbers. And those are always like, I need to pay attention to what’s around me when I see the repeating numbers or the feeling in my heart that I need to reset. Or there’s something I need to stop and pay attention to when I see those repeating numbers. But in your experience, what’s the vehicle for the message for you?

Laurie (07:05.474)
Well, I think all of those things like songs or license plates or repeating numbers or feathers that many people will see them and go, that’s nice and not take the time to tune in. And it’s really tuning into what was I thinking about? What was I feeling? Where was I in that moment when that sign came through? And then for me working with my guides, I journey with them. So it’ll be on a meditative journey where I will be

curious about something and a guide will come forward and actually take me on a journey. So whether that is they’re taking me somewhere to teach me something or to introduce me to another guide or an angel or really to just sit in conversation, I go deep in those meditative journeys.

Julie Hilsen (07:53.903)
So it’s creative, it’s using your imagination a lot too. And trusting that you’re not being fantastical, you’re just exploring where the energies are taking you.

Laurie (08:06.4)
Right? Well, our imagination is the gateway to our intuitive senses. But I think as we were schooled, we were taught imagination is fantasy, it’s not real, it’s, you know, they’re just playing around being silly, but it’s actually that visioning that takes us to being someone who is so intrinsically soul -led.

Julie Hilsen (08:29.779)
That’s so beautiful. And have you seen the movie If? I mean, I loved it so much. I loved it so much my husband fell asleep. It was a Friday night and he was just, you know, trashed from the work week. He was just done. And so I’m sitting on the couch watching this movie, you know, by myself and my snoring husband next to me. And he wakes up and I’m just bawling. I’m bawling when I find out, you know, who her…

Laurie (08:33.037)
Yes.

Julie Hilsen (08:58.275)
the connection she had and you realize what, you know, who her imaginary friend was. And I was just like, that touched me so much. It was just like, that’s the best movie I’ve seen in a long time because I actually went and used my imagination to go along with her. Like I let myself be in that space with that little girl. it’s…

Laurie (09:22.35)
And as little as we all have imaginary friends and their guides their spirits their angels, right? and it’s just even interesting that we call them imaginary friends because that means they’re not real but they are real and this whole world of of being with your spiritual team once you sense it it’s all about how you feel because you get in there and you know that this feels so right and so true that it can’t be fake

Julie Hilsen (09:25.281)
Mm

Yeah.

Julie Hilsen (09:50.385)
it’s it’s just warmed my heart so much here. And you say that we my brother and I had one named Beezer. And we’d run around with Beezer. Beezer was tricky, very, very funny.

Laurie (09:59.511)
Right?

Healing Relationships through Connection

Laurie (10:04.59)
And many of our guides love to be funny and bring us joy. I mean, there are, you know, a whole group of guides called joy guides that we can connect with and help us bring more joy into our life, especially these times in our world are a little bit hard on us sometimes. And the energy is a little bit tough to deal with. So tapping into in the morning, you know, centering yourself going into a meditative state and saying, you know, I’d love to

Julie Hilsen (10:18.658)
Yeah.

Julie Hilsen (10:22.146)
Yeah.

Laurie (10:34.21)
to connect with a joy guide and being open and saying, bring me a surprise today and seeing what shows up for you.

Julie Hilsen (10:42.037)
I love that. And honestly, I had I had trouble and I’m not always the best at visualizing. But if I can place a color in my like, I’ll get relaxed and I’ll put my eyes back a little bit. That helps me I don’t know why connect but I’ll picture a color and then the color will start changing. But I just have to get something on the palette per se just to get things moving. Because I

Laurie (11:08.43)
So find out what works for you because color really works or if you find something, a playlist that has music that really works for you that helps you to connect or some people love to connect while they’re walking. Just try different things and see what works for you for connection. And once you feel like you can go within, because in the shamanic traditions, we’ll say you go within to get everywhere.

Julie Hilsen (11:20.121)
you

Julie Hilsen (11:35.022)
Mmm.

Laurie (11:35.18)
So go within your heart and then just imagine a place where you would like to meet with your loved one, be it a bench in a park or a beach or, you know, by some tall trees and just kind of go there and invite them in with no expectations and just see what happens. Often the one that we’re wanting to connect with, will be someone else will come through and that will be so surprising to us that we will be like, whoa, this is real.

and just sit with them and see if they have any messages for you. And often it’s about the feeling. You’ll get the feeling on your body somewhere. So tune into that feeling and see what it’s about.

Julie Hilsen (12:21.603)
Yeah, I did that with my Uncle Kenny. He passed away and I was like, know, Uncle Kenny, I miss you. I wasn’t able, it was my husband’s uncle and I wasn’t able to go to the funeral because I had the kids obligations and we had just seen him two weeks before. It was just like really crazy and I was just like, Uncle Kenny, you I’m really gonna miss seeing you but I know you’re gonna be around. And I felt warmth on my shoulder, like his comfort.

Laurie (12:51.668)
And doesn’t that help you to know that, I mean, so many people have a fear of death, a fear of what happens after death. And if you’re tuning into somebody and you actually feel a pressure on your body and that warmth and that love, you know that there’s more to us than just this life.

Julie Hilsen (12:51.702)
And bless it.

Julie Hilsen (13:08.611)
Mm -hmm. And then sometimes I’ve also heard that people hear a bird when they think about their loved one and that’s a sign of all these birds coming around or just the sound at this time.

Laurie (13:20.206)
butterflies or dragonflies, you know, there’s so many ways that we can connect in. It’s just about setting that intention and then paying attention.

Julie Hilsen (13:35.456)
And isn’t it nice to think that, you know, creating space for this, it’s healthy for your body too, just shut off everything and just sort of be a blank canvas for a moment, stop the thoughts and just, you know, set an intention and just sit, you know, that’s a gift in itself.

Laurie (13:53.666)
Right? Creating that spaciousness, that moment where we’re not in our heads and we’re more in our hearts. I, know, people make it so complicated. And I think it’s just kind of, if you can imagine that your energy is all in your head when you’re talking and thinking and just take your hands and just move that energy down to your heart and feel it move and notice how your thoughts go quiet.

From that space is where you connect.

Julie Hilsen (14:27.289)
Beautiful, beautiful. if someone’s just is listening in, she took her hands and she just gently did it like she was she was gonna go fluff a pillow. It’s just like so cool. So cool. I just I have so many stories about like the other night I was like, I’m just gonna ask Ruth if she’ll be in my dream. And I invited my mother -in -law to be in my dream and

She showed up, she really showed up. And I know it was her because her outfits and the things she was doing and her shoes and it was really fun. It was a really fun dream and I remembered it. Cause a lot of times I have fun dreams, but I go to tell someone and I’m like, I can’t even, it was cool, but I can’t remember now, but I remembered I was able to tell my boys and my husband and you know, was just a special night because I got to have a dream with my dear mother -in -law who,

She left the earth too soon. You know, weren’t ready for her to go at all. But yeah, I remember I asked my grandma to help me find something one time and all of a sudden it’s sitting on the corner of my bed and it wasn’t there before, you know?

Laurie (15:41.686)
Right? So, you know, it’s that in the asking it is given, I think a lot of people will still feel a lot of fear around it through conditioning beliefs and things that have been passed down to them. And what you said is so true, it’s about the fun, right? You wanted to have fun and it came through and it was fun. And when we put too much pressure on it, I think it’s when it becomes hard, you know?

Letting Go of Judgments and Opening Up

Julie Hilsen (16:03.695)
you

Laurie (16:08.622)
I’d love for you to be in my dreams tonight and I’d love to remember and just see what happens, just be open. And when those fears come up like, maybe this isn’t right or maybe maybe she’s busy, know, no, I’m just going to, I’m just going to explore. It’s like being childlike and exploring. Let’s explore this sixth sense that we all have. We were taught we have five senses and we have at least six, maybe 11. And this is another topic.

But let’s just connect into that sixth sense and know that we are all able to connect with our loved ones and it doesn’t have to be hard.

Julie Hilsen (16:45.747)
I totally agree with you. Well, I hope someone listening can connect with this and go to your website. offer the mini class, just put your email in and you emailed it. You just confirm the email and it comes back to your mailbox. So I’m excited to look at what you’re doing because I’m always curious about it. And honestly, it took me a long time to get the courage to even.

tell people that these are things that I’m doing. Like, I was talking to my father -in -law, I’m just sharing all over. And I was like, Neil, if you got the message, can you give me a sign? And here the candle I had lit to start talking to him, I lit a candle and it just got quiet. And the the flame just helps me relax and have more fun, not take it seriously. I was like, just give me a sign and I…

All of sudden, I went and did dishes, we had dinner, and I came back and here the wax had dripped into a J for my name. And I was like, thanks, Neil. And I had everyone look, I’m like, look at this wax. It’s never done this before.

Laurie (17:50.209)
Wow.

Laurie (17:59.17)
Right? And I think one thing that’s important to mention is that many of us have, myself included, have relationships with our loved ones in life that maybe aren’t great. Maybe there’s a break in the relationship or maybe there’s a reason that after they pass, we think, we never got the chance to work this out. And it’s so possible to…

Julie Hilsen (18:14.883)
Mm -hmm.

Laurie (18:26.382)
clean up that human to human relationship and go in and heal and heal those relationships so that after that we can connect soul to soul and it’s like this pure connection. So many people will say, well, I didn’t like them in life so why would I want to connect to them? But that means there’s work to be done there to heal that relationship. And it’s always so profound when we do that and it’s really life changing.

Julie Hilsen (18:54.407)
It’s a gift that you could give yourself if you want to be vulnerable to go there. And it occurred to me that sometimes I’d feel judged or having in -laws is not always easy, right? Because you don’t have this history. And I even thought, we can move beyond any judgments or petty things because now you’re in heaven and you’re sensing and knowing everything.

that I was going through and I’m standing here with compassion. So yeah, I think it takes years off your life. I mean, it gives years to your life. Years off wrinkles on your face is what I was thinking of. If you’re letting go of this stuff, you can just see things release. Like when I’m having hard days, I’m like, God, I look so old today. And it’s just that I’m holding on to shit. I just need to let it go.

Laurie (19:45.25)
Right?

Laurie (19:52.578)
I think it’s such a good way to bring ourselves peace in all our relationships and to really step back and think, you know, we all have our own belief systems and we all have our own influences, but really we’re all doing our best in all of our relationships. And if I’m doing my best and say my father was doing his best, but when my father passed, things were still quite messy and going in and having those, time with him to clear that up.

Julie Hilsen (19:55.663)
Mm

Laurie (20:21.734)
just completely transformed our relationship. And now I call him my Merlin because he just comes through with magic all the time. But in life, we weren’t close. it’s such an opportunity to connect with them once they’ve passed.

Julie Hilsen (20:30.402)
Mm

Julie Hilsen (20:40.055)
love that. And so that’s one thing I want to ask you. Do you have, like, if you’re connecting to a relative you maybe didn’t know, like say I wanted to connect to my grandma Clara, who, she died when I was a baby, my dad’s mother. You just do the same thing. You go to your special place and say, hey, grandma Clara, we weren’t, I didn’t really know you. I was so little. And you just started like.

Laurie (21:09.388)
Yeah, mean, nothing to lose, right? You can try it and just be open to what happens. There’s no parameters, there’s no rules. If she’s coming to mind as somebody that you’d like to connect with, there’s a reason for that. So she’s probably got a message for you that’s going to help in some way in your relationships or in your work. And they don’t come to mind for no reason, right?

Julie Hilsen (21:10.287)
Do it like that.

Julie Hilsen (21:37.179)
That’s really special. you know people if you’re if you’re thinking of somebody or you’ve always wondered about somebody and you’re you know, you you get these precious moments and Sometimes you forget to ask the right questions, right? And then you’re like I missed out, know, and maybe you didn’t miss out Maybe it wasn’t the right timing for you to know So I hold space for anyone who who wants to explore this and have you ever had well you said you could be general but

Laurie (21:57.838)
rate.

Julie Hilsen (22:06.457)
Have you ever experienced or heard of anyone saying, if I have a relative who’s dealt with a child like I have right now, you’re having trouble parenting and be like, all right, is there a relative that has insight on this issue that I’m dealing with?

Laurie (22:22.542)
Well, and I would say don’t limit it to a relative. Perhaps there’s a parenting expert that you really loved or somebody that you want to connect with. think, this person would know the answer, but they’ve passed. Connect with them.

Julie Hilsen (22:27.406)
Okay.

Laurie (22:42.254)
There’s no rules. remember I was writing and I thought, I’d sure love to have some more poetic stuff in here. I wonder if I could connect to Maya Angelou and just bring her forward and see if she could help me. And you can, right? As long as you’re open and you have that intention of doing it with love, you can talk to anyone.

Julie Hilsen (22:44.463)
you

Julie Hilsen (23:02.735)
my good, I can’t believe you just said that. Cause she’s on my, have you ever done the 10 people you’d have at the ultimate dinner party? She’s one of them.

Laurie (23:09.164)
Mm -hmm. There you go. you know, if you, one of the things that many people can do if they’re not really visual is automatic writing. So you can sit and write an intention and then pick up your pen and perhaps set a timer and just let your pen go and don’t take your pen off the page and just let it go and you’ll be surprised what comes through.

Julie Hilsen (23:36.187)
that’s such great advice. I love that. I love that. It’s easy. Like you said, it doesn’t have to be complicated. Well, we’re coming up on our time and I want to make sure you’re able to share everything that you have coming up or is there anything else on your heart that you’re thinking about sharing or?

Laurie (23:43.064)
Right, right.

Laurie (24:00.578)
You know, just that we all have this ability to connect and I would love for everyone to just know that there’s no rules, there’s no limits and just be open and curious because, you know, faith and fear ask the same of us to believe in the unknown. So let’s choose that faith and just open up and be curious, be playful, be light, have fun, and you’ll be surprised.

how much support you really truly do have.

Julie Hilsen (24:36.075)
It’s so beautiful. It’s so cool. I’m just thinking about how it’s, I can see why you started with family because you can feel more secure and you know, it’s like starting there, but then knowing that there it’s limitless after that, you know, once you’re feeling, you know, like you had practice or you sort of the training wheels, a family’s a little bit of a training wheel.

is the way I’m seeing it.

Laurie (25:05.378)
People will often feel more comfortable connecting in with their loved ones because they knew them and they can picture them and they know what they would wear or how they would look. But then, yeah, after that, you can just open up.

Julie Hilsen (25:19.631)
well, this has just been such a magical conversation. I can’t wait. If people want to go on my website, you can comment. If you try and you have a situation or experience you want to share, is what I want to say, share it. And I’d love to bounce this around and have a safe place to just be free and joyful and no judgment. It’s just whatever comes in is what’s.

meant for you and it’s a special gift. just like you said, like Laurie said, just open yourself up and ask.

Laurie (25:55.47)
Right, right. And if anyone ever has any questions, I’m fairly good at answering messages on Instagram.

Julie Hilsen (26:03.941)
All right, okay, and what’s your handle on Instagram?

Laurie (26:07.283)
Just my name, Lori Parente.

Julie Hilsen (26:09.377)
Okay, and I’ll put a link to your website on the show notes. I’d be delighted to do that.

Laurie (26:14.36)
Perfect. Thank you so much. What a wonderful conversation.

Julie Hilsen (26:17.497)
Thank you.