Welcome to our second Celebrity Friday. Today’s guest is Judy Garland. Before you read on, let’s have another contest. Here’s the question: What was Erik’s first set of wheels? The winner gets to submit the next Ask Erik question. All I ask is that the submission is something everyone can benefit from. Please stay away from questions like, “Is my Aunt Sue okay? Does she visit me often? Will I get promoted,” etc. If the winner submits questions like these, I can’t accept them. Sessions are not cheap, so I want all the CE peeps to get something out of what Erik says. It’s a “most bang for the buck” thing. Please submit your answers to emedhus@gmail.com.

Okay, Judy. You’re on!

Me: Can you get Judy Garland, Erik. See if she’s available?

Erik: M’kay.

Me (mimicking Erik): M’kay.

Jamie laughs.

Erik disappears.

Jamie (to Erik, hearing him only): Oh yeah.  Go see if she’s here now.

Jamie: Is she the one who did Somewhere Over the Rainbow?

Me: Yeah!  She was in The Wizard of Oz.

Jamie: Wizard of Oz. God I gotta get it straight.

Me: She died from an overdose I think.

Jamie: Hi.

Me: Hello Ms. Garland. How are you?

Jamie (giggling): She’s still, I mean, kind of middle aged, but her face looks so young and round and real sweet, you know. She’s blushing and saying thank you. Aw, she’s really interactive.

Me: Good.

Jamie: Where, you know, Whitney stood tall and kept her distance, and when I made eye contact with her, I don’t know what it was, I got knocked off my game.

Me: Wow. So on the way here, did Erik explain what we’re doing here?

Jamie: She says she knows what we’re doing.

Me: Okay, good!

Judy: I’m very much into it! I’ve heard about it before.

Jamie: Apparently you’ve interviewed someone she knew.

Me: Oh, okay!

Dang, I should have asked who!

Me: Well, the first question is what was your spiritual mission while you were here, Ms. Garland?

Judy: On Earth?

Jamie chuckles.

Me: On Earth, yes.

Judy giggles.

Judy: Maybe it was to be a pain to my parents!

Jamie laughs hard.

Me: Uh oh!

Jamie: She’s funny!

Me: How great!

Jamie: She giggles about that.

Judy: My parents were down to earth and hysterical, but my mother was very tough with me. She wanted me to be perfect. Maybe that’s why I got to the place I did in the business. Now, my spiritual mission on Earth?  I never felt like I had one.  It was just to be true to myself.

Me: Well there we go. That’s one!

Judy: How to be me.

Me: Yeah.

Judy giggles.

Me: That’s a big spiritual mission right there.

Judy: Good! Write that down!

Me: I will! I will! Were you here to learn anything beside being true to yourself and learning to be you?

Judy: Yes. I just had a voice bigger than my body and so did my sisters, and we definitely put that to use straight away.

Me Mm hm.

Jamie: Her parents were actors?

Me: I don’t know.

Jamie: That’s what she’s saying. I don’t know either.

Me: Okay.

Jamie: And you asked her something. What was it?

Me: Were you here to learn something else besides learning to be you?

Judy: Well, I had to learn that, because I couldn’t ignore it. It just came up everywhere. I think what I had to learn was that not everybody was comfortable with who I was.

Me: Ah! Okay.

Judy: I learned how to adjust and tone down myself to let others shine with me. I was what my parents called a natural star.

Me: Ah! Were you here to teach anything?

Judy: Well I was not a teacher by any means, but what I did was teach my children poise and grace and to have fun!

Me: Oh, what gifts! And I can see that that you accomplished that. Do you think that you accomplished everything you set out to do?

Judy: Yes, yes and yes!

Me: Aw, that’s good! Not too many people can say that!

What’s with all the exclamation points. I’m out of control here! I mean, I’m out of control here.

Judy: No.

Me: You must be very proud. Did you gain any insights when you crossed over?

Judy: That my daughter was crazier than I suspected!

Jamie laughs hard!

Me: Oh my gosh, that’s funny.

Jamie: The way it’s delivered; that’s the part that’s priceless, because you know she’s making a joke, but yet her face tries to make it look very serious, so it’s very funny.

Me: And you mean that in an endearing way, I suppose?

Judy: Oh, yes! She gets the crazy from me, straight from me!

Me: What kind of craziness are you talking about? Just being fun-loving or out there or…

Judy: Fun-loving. I’ll take that one straight from you.

Me: Okay.

Judy: It’s being careless of rules, that kind of crazy.

Me: Oh good. More people should be like that, because a lot of rules are just a bunch of nonsense.

Jamie and Judy laugh.

Me: Can you share a life that most influenced your life as Judy Garland?

Judy: I love this question; I was waiting for it! This is your most brilliant question.

Me: Aw, thanks!

Judy: I hope you highlight this throughout your book.

Me: Of course.

Judy: I just wanted you to know that.

Jamie chuckles.

(Long pause as Jamie listens to Judy.)

Jamie: Okay this is not a joke. That’s how she prefaced it.

(Pause)

Jamie (to Judy): Okay, so that’s why you’re saying that. (to me) Because she keeps showing me a horse. She’s talking about being a wild mustang, an animal.

Me: Okay.

Judy: I loved the strength of being that animal and the freedom, and surviving nature and weather and learning how to avoid danger and living in harmony.

Me: It sounds like you’re talking about the twister in The Wizard of Oz there!

Jamie and I giggle.

Judy: Yes, well, we all know that that had multiple meanings on many levels. So, as that mustang, I had a life that was fully under my control. When you’re in the animal kingdom, the joy of it is that animals are not reared and kept by parents. They’re released into the wild. They’re free, and the majority of their life is about learning their own control, their own power, and creating their own destiny, and it’s not financially driven. In my life as Judy, I was controlled by the business, the money, my mother, and other people in my life. Through that, I learned the value of having control of your life instead of turning it over to people who might not make the best choices for you. That weakened me. It made me lose faith in myself and in my life.

Me: I see.

Judy: Being that wild and beautiful animal, that life was not about striving to meet an ends. I could do what I wanted to. For me, it was truly what choice was all about. You had your reaction right after. There was no delay as it often is with humans. Those delays come from people trying to influence you and from your own self-doubt, which can also come from the people around you. That life, it was the most freeing and delightful life I have ever experienced.

Me: How wonderful!

I’m surprised I didn’t start neighing.

Judy: The only equivalent I could find in human life was the joy of sound, song, and singing. At any moment I could open my mouth and fall into music—reap my reward during, right then and there in the music, and then pull out when I was finished.

Me: I don’t remember you having a big affinity for horses or owning horses. Did you?

Judy: No, not really.

Jamie giggles.

Me: Okay. You were done with being a horse I guess. Do you have any messages or advice for us?

Judy: Respect animals. They are living beings just as we are. Though we don’t speak their language, that doesn’t make them lesser than us.

Me: Oh, yeah! How about you, Erik? Do you have any questions for Ms. Garland?

Erik: Yeah, so Judy, did you ever get home?

Jamie and I laugh!

Judy (reaching over gives two rough pats on Erik’s knee, then wiggling it back and forth): Oh, Erik, we both know we found it already.

Me: And that is where you are right now!

Judy (to Erik in a teasing voice): No ruby slippers required

Me (laughing): Okay, well thank you so much, Ms. Garland. I’m so honored that you took the time to be with us today.

Judy: Thank you for letting me be here.

Jamie: She’s very happy.

Me: Well, you’re welcome here any time.

Judy: Oh, thank you very much!

Jamie: She’s waving bye.

Me: Aw, okay. I’m waving back and blowing a kiss!

Judy: (in a mock imperious tone): Walk me out!

Erik and Judy leave.

Jamie: So cool. She had so much more personality than I thought!

Me: I know! Well Liza Minnelli has a lot of personality, so…

Jamie: Oh, that’s right. That’s her daughter! Oh my God, I forgot about that!