Many years ago I rodied for a well-known local mobile disk-jockey. For over twenty years he’d been gigging in that area serving the workie clubs and private events. He had something of a reputation for being a reliable choice.
Frequently he would tell anyone who talked to him, a story of how in his youth, twenty years previous, he’d once made the top five in a national competition for mobile djs.
Working as a rodie with him was hard work. He carried thousands of vinyls as part of his substantial gear, hundreds of CDs, a hugh amount of lighting and gear, and believe me, those boxes weren’t light! I had been a dj myself for a while, working the holiday camps and venues across the south of England. So, I’d learned the art of entertaining the audiences and understood the skills required. I had retired from my show, and decided to work as a rodie with this friend dj, who lived near me at the time.
My niggles with him started when I couldn’t understand his style of working. He never kept the floor filled for long. He never played tracks back to back without talking in between them. He often let tracks fade right out before talking and then leaving a gap before the next track. One track would fill the floor with dancers, who would drift back off the dance floor during his unnecessary talking bit and often the floor would be empty for the first half of the next track. It was frustrating to watch and annoying to listen to his consistent chatting.
Stupidly, one night I overstepped the mark. I told him he didn’t know how to hold the floor. He scolded me, exclaiming,” who was I to tell him what to do”, and reminded me that he once was a top five DJ in a national competition. Topping his recall to me with, ” I have over 20 years of experience, and you only did it for seven years.”
The truth was, yes he’d been a DJ for 20 years, but all he was doing was repeating what he’d learned in his first few gigs, 20 years before, repeating that formula time and time again. What he’d learned in his first year was what he was still relying on repeating over the years that followed.
I’ve seen this habit repeated a lot with the mediums of today. It appears they believe they’ve learned enough to be able to do some basic mediumship. But they’ve stopped developing and unfolding their abilities further, instead relying on what they first learned and repeating it over and over again. I’m not talking about the fundemental basics being repeated, that is perfectly acceptable. I’m talking about the weak evidence in their messages, and their lack of demonstrating a real connection with the spirit connect. I’ve gone back to see their demonstrations some years after seeing them work first time and I see little or no progress in their abilities.
Mediumship isn’t like a trademan’s skill, such as plumbing or mechanics, where once you qualify and know the basics, you’re set for a lifelong career. Mediumship involves progression, constantly learning, evolving one’s abilities and developing deeper relationships with one’s spirit.
A tutor once told me that the secret to becoming a better medium is to always practice the golden rule.
” We have two ears and one mouth. We need to remember to use them in that balance. Twice as much listening as talking”
This was a lesson that has always stayed with me, and one I try damned hard to adhere to to this very day.
