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I have had clairvoyant experiences all my life. As a child, I'd be riding along with my family, on a trip somewhere new and I would should out that I had seen the very same landscape the night before, in my dreams. I couldn't understand why others didn't "know" the same things that I automatically did. I began to feel different than others. Drawing and painting were my passions. My parents fed me a constant supply of paints, crayons and paper to keep me quiet. Yet when the time came for college, my parents urged me to study something I could make money at. As a freshman, I was most passionate about art class, but mindful of my parents' advice, I chose to major in fashion design. Every time the elevator went by the third floor though, I smelled the oil paint and I felt so drawn to it. In the end, I received a BFA from Syracuse University in painting and an MFA in painting from Queens College in the New York City area. As a graduate student, I experienced a spiritual awakening and began trying to paint the images that came to me in visions and dreams. As a result, I was put on probation by the (all male) graduate committee, who felt that my constant change of format was disturbing and that my images were "corny". Just one person on the faculty understood. She happened to be a practicing astrologer. Together, we decided that I should focus on what I had to do in order to graduate. I knew I could paint a portrait that would knock them out. So I did. The problem was that I was really yearning to experiment more with "unknown" territory. That would, it turned out, have to be put on hold. Meanwhile, I once again began to create the life-sized portraits that had so impressed the faculty at my previous school. While painting, I would go into trance-like states; later I realized I was channeling the subject's very essence. The finished portraits were powerful. Life went on for me... I had applied for a Fulbright grant. In 1985, my grant was awarded and I was off to paint in Paris! By then, I'd begun to meditate, become interested in Astrology, discovered the transformational and healing experiences that massage could offer, and had attended some healing and channeling groups. I know that my time in Paris was a cosmic gift; I was supposed to be affiliated with a person or school, and I wasn't. Although I was a new person in a new country, I was able to manifest places to live, very quickly. I felt - and still believe - that the entire experience was divinely guided. Only two painters received Fulbrights in Painting for Paris that year and I - out of all the students in the world - was one of them. I will never forget sitting at a reception table inside the American Embassy in Paris as part of a select group of Fulbright Scholars. While in Paris, I began offering readings to the other artists and musicians I shared living space with. The readings soon turned into healings; I found that I was shown or told where to make healing sounds or place my hands on different parts of people's bodies. I spent time meditating, practicing yoga and doing readings/healings. I don't know what the Fulbright committee would have thought.... Back in the U.S., I lived for a few months at the Pathwork Center in Upstate New York, a spiritual path for growth that is based on a series of over 250 lectures channeled by Eva Pierrokas in the 60's and 70's. It is very much a path of self responsibility. During this time I decided to enter Barbara Brennan's hands-on healing school because my readings had transitioned from guidance I received audibly to literally being instructed where to place my hands on a person's body, or what sound to make over an individual's body. But something was missing... it was, of course, my art. I didn't have the time, energy and money to do it all. It was necessary to come to a decision about where to focus my energies. I knew I had to find a way to blend my artistic interests with my interest in healing and the metaphysical. During this time, I had some incredible, magical experiences. I learned that a spirit guide, a Native American man named Three Black Feathers, was with me, mentoring and guiding me. Sometimes, as I gave sound or hands-on healing, my client would "see" him. Once, while I was having a chiropractic treatment, the chiropractor even saw him. At those times, he appeared with a single black bird on his shoulder. Other mystical experiences included speaking in other languages while I was healing and encounters with other spirit beings. Soon, I formed my company, Creatrix. I began to publish my art in the form of cards with messages. It has been a long road with a lot of learning curves. But my business has brought everything together for me. I feel extremely fulfilled when I receive feedback on how my images or writings have touched the lives of others. I have also found fulfillment in teaching classes on art and meditation; I have taught these classes at the Open Center in New York City and the Omega Institute in Upstate New York, among other places. Today, I share my life with a wonderful man, my partner. We live on 9 acres in the Catskill Mountains of New York. He has just finished building my dream studio, complete with a French door overlooking the meadow and forest on our land, along with huge windows and skylights. I have dreamt of this life for many years and it feels like a miracle that has manifested after a long struggle. To me, this is confirmation that we must know what our dreams are, so that we can manifest them. Melissa Harris's inspirational artwork is featured on prints, cards and other gift items. When she isn't creating, she spends her time teaching workshops. She has become known for her commissioned spirit essence portraits. Learn more about her and view her work at |
As a child, Melissa Harris was inspired to paint and draw - constantly. Clairvoyant gifts that emerged during those early years left her feeling apart from the rest of the world, but as she grew older, those same gifts would deepen and develop, offering her a sense of purpose and inspiration. She could have never guessed the journey she would embark on - a journey that would take her to Paris, into the world of healing and channeling, into the field of teaching... yet always including her passion for her art. Now, she paints from a dream studio, situated in a magical meadow at the foot of the beautiful Catskill Mountains, as the owner of her own successful, mystically and spiritually inspired business. - Jo Valerie
