Whisperings from the Past

About the Book

many unanswered questions of those who share a curiosity about the spiritual realm. Citing a conversation in the Book of Matthew between Jesus and his disciples, authors Colin and Susan Thomson now bring direct focus to the topic of reincarnation. While interpretations of biblical passages vary among different religious traditions and scholars, it’s important to note that the concept of reincarnation is not universally accepted within Christianity. For those who believe in the existence of spirit guides and past lives, accessing information about previous incarnations through direct communication with guides could provide insights into personal growth, spiritual evolution, and the understanding of karmic patterns or life lessons. Ultimately, whether one chooses to explore past lives or communicate with spirit guides, the pursuit of understanding oneself and one’s place in the universe can be a deeply enriching and transformative journey. Within these pages are accounts of personal journeys, which shape the people we are today and the people we can eventually become, deeply grounded in Christ Jesus.

About the Author

Colin Roderick Thomson I entered this world as a frail child plagued by frequent seizures throughout the first six years of my life. One fateful day, I had a particularly severe seizure and was rushed to hospital by my parents and later pronounced dead. I was revived by what I believe to be the divine intervention of Jesus, and since then I’ve not had any further seizures. This awakening marked the start of my awareness of guardian angels and my spirit guide. My father and his family emigrated from Scotland, where they were exposed to a culture rich in spiritual tradition among the indigenous Maori people. Despite their deep-rooted beliefs, the colonial government sought to suppress their practices, favouring Western medicine over traditional healers, or tohunga. This repression instilled a societal stigma against anything relating to the spiritual realm, so I concealed my spiritual experience and awareness. I attended Wanganui East Primary School. From there I went to Wanganui Technical College, where I gained my university entrance, and went on to attend Victoria University, in Wellington. I studied law, graduating with a law degree. For the first six years of being in the workforce, I worked as a legal adviser to private members of parliament, which may sound like a fascinating and challenging role. Private members of parliament often play a crucial role in representing specific constituencies or advancing policy agendas within legislative bodies. As a legal adviser, my responsibilities involved providing legal counsel and assistance to these members in their parliamentary duties. Overall, working as a legal adviser to private members of parliament provided me with a unique insight into the intersection of law, politics, and public policy, which strengthened my analytical skills, legal expertise, and ability to navigate complex and dynamic legislative environments. From there I went on to join a law firm in the private sector until eventually branching out on my own and creating a successful law firm. I kept my spiritual awareness hidden, as it conflicted with the norms of society and the circles I moved in. Spirituality was still very much behind closed doors as at that time, and it was frowned upon as being on the fringe of the mentally insane. I did, however, share my secret with my grandmother, as I was very close to her and, of course, she had been there in the room to witness my near-death experience. I married and had three children, but the demands of my job and later my own law practice meant I kept long hours and was away from home a lot. It took a toll on me, eventually leading to a breakdown in my health and my marriage, which I later left. Susan Thomson I was born fifth into a family of seven in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand at a time when Maori culture was heavily dominated by the spirit world through tohunga, the spiritual leaders to the chief of the tribe. Our culture was predominantly tribal; there are many tribes in New Zealand even to this day. I identify as Ngāpuhī, which is the largest tribe in New Zealand. The majority of people in our area were Maori. Although we didn’t have material wealth, we were happy. We had land on which to grow our food, and plenty of water from the river. Seafood was abundant, and of course we had our native forests, from which we could forage not only for food but also for medicinal herbs. Traditional families of mother and father were normal households. Our dad, on the other hand, worked on building roads and creating drains. Since owning a vehicle was rare, camping on job sites was the normal practice for men who worked in these jobs. My father’s brothers worked in the bush felling native timbers, and they also camped on their jobs. I attended a native school, which was a very happy time for me, as I loved school. However, we were prevented from speaking our own native tongue in favour of the English language. Being strapped by a male teacher with a leather strap really hurt. I decided from that day forth to speak only English so I wouldn’t make that mistake again. At home my parents spoke our native tongue, but I always replied in English. It was challenging living in two cultures—English during the day at school and in my own culture the rest of the time. As a child, I wasn’t aware of the reasoning behind this. When I was ten years of age, my family moved south to a rural area close to Auckland for employment. This was also a happy time for us as a family—with the exception of school. I hated the new school, as we were one of two Maori families in the whole school. Being a native Maori, I sensed that we were stigmatized against as being worthless savages by the English children. Two years later, our mother passed away, tearing our family apart. I, my brother, and one of my older sisters were sent to live with my Nan Ngāwini, my mother’s mother. I didn’t know her and longed to be home with my father’s family and the relatives I had grown up with. After two years living with Nan Ngāwini, I was returned to my father’s family. I was so happy and was even happier to live with my Nan Hazel, whom I knew. I loved to take care of her, as she was partially blind. Our family was split apart as a result of the draconian laws of the day, which did not permit men to care for children. Right up the 1980s, women had no rights. They could not own a home; the paperwork had to have a male’s signature. Nor could they qualify for any financial assistance. So women of the time were really trapped. At fifteen, I put my age up to seventeen and got a job working in a hotel in Whangarei as a housemaid, which I enjoyed. When my older sister decided to move to Auckland, I of course followed, and I was fortunate to get a job as a waitress in the Ambassador Hotel, down on the waterfront. I then met Anthony, who was English. After a while, I agreed to marry him, but unfortunately my father was against the English at the time and was against me marrying him. There was nothing I could do, as in those days we had to have the permission of our parents to marry. We then left New Zealand and went to live in Australia. Anthony was rather strange in his attitudes. When our daughter was born, he wanted to send her to live with his mother in England so we could continue to travel. That broke my heart. I couldn’t part with my baby. In the end, I returned to New Zealand to start my life over again. Being a solo mother was not an easy thing, as there was no support. I continued to work and boarded my daughter out during the week, which was very traumatic not only for my daughter but for me as well. Eventually I knew that I had to have a stable home for my daughter, as she would soon be going to school. Getting a mortgage in the 1970s was out of the question, so I decided the only way forward was to get married. It was not what I wanted to do, but for the stability of my daughter there was no other option. And so it was that I got married on the Friday and was in the housing office on the Monday to apply for a mortgage to buy a home. I had made my bed, so to speak, and was determined to do what I had to in order to make it work. I continued to work from home as a machinist and had two sons during our seven-year marriage. The marriage was a disaster. My husband turned out to be a drinker and a gambler. Certainly that was not what I had envisioned, so the marriage didn’t last. I stayed single for fifteen years and raised my three children on my own until eventually meeting the love of my life, Colin.