Pheaturing Ester Nicholson

Hello, and welcome to the Phile. I am your host, Jason Peverett, star of the new movie Kick-Arse. I wanna create a British super hero named Kick-Arse. I think it'll catch on.  It's back-to-school season. Going back to school, especially to a new school, can be scary, but I do have some advice, and I think it's good advice for kids. Be yourself. And if that doesn't work, be someone cooler.  In Tennessee, a boy seven months old was at the center of a legal battle because his parents couldn't agree on his last name. They went to court and the magistrate refused to validate the kid's FIRST name. The parents wanted to name him Messiah. The magistrate forced them to change it to Martin. If the first name is Messiah, you'll never find those little personalized license plates for your bike. I think we should bring that magistrate to Hollywood and put her in charge of celebrity baby names because they're not even giving their kids names anymore. They're giving them nouns. You go to any playground in L.A., yell the word "river," and 10 kids will come running.  Did you hear this? Justin Bieber's grandmother was serenaded by her naked douche of a grandson. Ugh, this kid. Really. Let's just say that the Biebers have horrible boundary issues. Why was there a photographer there? Showing up naked at your grandma's door to make her scream is something that should be kept within the family, not paraded in tabloids for attention. TMZ is claiming that the grandma claims that she thought this was "a hoot." Everyone knows senior citizens saying "it was a hoot" is the same as a teen saying "yeah it was fine, whatever." It means nothing.  I had a few emails mentioning why I didn't mention the sinkhole in my backyard last Monday. I have to tell you first, the sinkhole wasn't really in my backyard but about 20 miles away from my house. It was still in Clermont though. People just wanted to enjoy the magic of Disney World. It's a small, small world and it's getting smaller as large chunks of earth were getting sucked underground. If you don't know what happened, about 35 people were forced to evacuate a resort about 10 minutes from Disney World in Central Florida after a 60-foot sinkhole opened up underneath them. Luckily, the resort sunk with cartoonishly slow speed so everyone had a chance to get out. It seems like this sort of thing is happening in Florida all the time lately, but I am certainly not hoping the entire state gets sucked under soon. That's probably not even possible. Right?  I can't wait for the Bill Gates biopic starring Channing Tatum.  Man, Disney I have to say is one of the smartest companies ever... and the greatest company to work for ever. But when it comes to some of the designs for the clothes they sell in the parks I don't think they think of everything.

So, did you hear what happened at J.J. Abrams' office this week? No? Well, I'll show you.

What the hell? Why do the Stormtroopers have duck like feet? I mean, look at them! That makes no sense.  So, once in awhile when I get bored I go on Twitter and look up certain words. One of those words I look up is Foghat. This is what I saw recently...

Well, it's still summer and all through summer I have been showing you some phascinating swimming pools. I ran out of ones to show you, so luckily some of you readers have been sending some in. Like this one for instance...

The Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa in Iceland. The steamy waters are part of a lava formation. The warm waters are rich in minerals like silica and sulfur which give the lagoon this milky blue color. Bathing in the Blue Lagoon is reputed to help some people suffering from skin diseases such as psoriasis. The water temperature in the bathing and swimming area of the lagoon averages 104 °F. Ummm... no thank you. Okay, and now for some sad news...

Bert Lance
June 3, 1931 - Aug 15, 2013
Oh, it's broke alright. And there's no fixing it.

Jack Germond
Jan 30, 1928 - Aug 14, 2013
Old news.

This one is strecth. If you spot the Mindphuck email me at thepeverettphile@gmail.com. Okay, so a few weeks ago on the Phile I had the kids from the band Daemon Familiar here and they explained a Daemon Familiar is a spirit animal like a witch's cat. Each member is a different animal like a squirrel or dog. I asked them what my animal would be and Wendi, the drummer for the band said I would be a sloth. I don't know too much about sloths, just they are cute animals. I wnated to learn more about them so I thought I would invite an expert on sloths to the Phile to explain it. Man, this is a friggin' long build up to a stupid joke. Haha. Anyway, I thought I would invite someone to explain what sloths are, and who better to explain than a sloth itself. So, please welcome to the Phile, the Phile's newest character...

Me: Hello, Sid. How are you?

Sidney: I'm fine.

Me: So, I don't know much about your species. Can you tell me something interesting?

Sidney: Sure. Sometimes a sloths metabolism can slow down so much we could starve to death with a full stomach. We often mistake our own arms for a branch and fall to our deaths.

Me: Ummm.... that's not good.

Sidney: We also risk our lives climbing down to the dangerous jungle floor purely to poop.

Me: Well, so the sloths are not bright. This is not working out so well.

Sidney: No, but we are loved. You know the singer Tiffany Thompson who you had on the Phile a few times?

Me: Um... yeah.

Sidney: She has a t-shirt with me on it. Take a look...

Me: Sidney Sloth, everybody.

Today's guest is the author of "Soul Recovery - 12 Keys to Healing Addiction", the 27th book to be pheatured in the Phile's Book Club. She also has a new CD out called "Child Above the Sun". Please welcome to the Phile author, teacher, speaker, musician and entrepreneur... Ester Nicholson.

Me: Hello, Ester, welcome to the Phile. It's a honor to have you here. How are you?

Ester: I'm well. Thank you for taking the time to interview me.

Me: Your book "Soul Recovery - 12 Keys to Healing Recovery" is in the Phile's Book Club, but we'll talk about that in a minute. You are a spiritual therapist, am I right?

Ester: Yes, I am.

Me: I don't really know what a spiritual therapist does, or is. Can you tell us?

Ester: A spiritual therapist works with a client on a spiritual as well as emotional level. Most therapy is solely on a cognitive level. My work as a spiritual therapist is to support a client to reconnect to the part of their identity that is not only based in wholeness and self-love, but that was created out of wholeness and love. I get under the hood of the emotional traumas to find the spiritual cause of the discord they are experiencing.

Me: Have long have you been doing this practice, Ester?

Ester: Eight years now.

Me: I read that you are Agape-licensed... what is that? Did you have to go to school or college to become a spiritual therapist?

Ester: Yes, it is a five year course intensive that was under the leadership of United Centers For Spiritual Living.

Me: Did you have spiritual therapy done yourself?

Ester: All the time. I am a big believer, and passionate about the fact that therapists, teachers and ministers simply cannot give what they don't have. I have a spiritual therapist that I am in contact with on a weekly basis.

Me: It says in your bio, and is one of the first things I was told about you, is that you are a former crack addict. I take it you are clean now, am I right?

Ester: I am recovered and have been for 26 years.

Me: First things first, how old were you when you started crack, Ester?

Ester: Twenty-one years old.

Me: And how long were you on it?

Ester: Five Years of the dark night.

Me: I have never done crack myself. I would be afraid to use a lighter and a spoon. That's how you do it, right? Were you on any other drugs?

Ester: No, you're talking about heroin. A lighter and spoon is not how you use crack cocaine. You would use a glass pipe for that.

Me: Oh, well, I would be scared to use a glass pipe. Now pot, that's another story... When did you realize that you had enough and wanted to get off it?

Ester: I wanted to get off of it four years before I actually had the courage and commitment to do it. That is the whole point of powerlessness. Even though you want to stop living such a demoralizing self-destructive life, if you're a real addict, you simply cannot until you finally surrender to the point where you're willing to get help.

Me: Was it hard to stop doing crack?

Ester: Absolutely. I was suffering from a spiritual malady, a mental obsession and a physical allergy. 

Me: You have a daughter, am I right? Was she a big part of you wanting to clean yourself up?

Ester: Of course, but even my love for her wasn't enough for me to stop, until it was actually time for me to stop.

Me: Is your book "Soul Recovery - 12 Keys to Healing Recovery" about getting clean from drug use?

Ester: While it certainly addresses those issues, no it is not about getting clean. It's about recovery... the recovery of your soul; the recovery of your true identity that has been buried by all the beliefs of shame, blame, powerlessness and illusion.

Me: I would think there would be only one key... wanting to see your daughter grow up. What made you decide to write a book, Ester?

Ester: No, that is not the only key to wanting to not die a tragic death or live a tragic life, but certainly one of the main motivators. I wrote this book because I had a message of healing that had saved my life. I was compelled to share it with the world so that those who found themselves hungry for wholeness, desperate to release the fear that dogged their every step, would have a set of tools to support them in doing that.

Me: How long did it take you to write it and was it hard to come up with 12 keys?

Ester: It took four years to write it because I was writing it as I was growing into a deeper level of the message. It couldn't be written before its time. Not to mention that I suffered from my own addiction to procrastination. LOL. No, it wasn't hard to come up with the 12 keys because I was already living them to the best of my ability.

Me: AA has a 12 step program. Why is it always 12? Is it to do with 12 months in a year?

Ester: Jesus had 12 deciples, there are 12 months in a year, I think the number 12 might have some spiritual significance.

Me: Okay, your book is about healing recovery, about getting over addictions, right? Some addictions are good, so what addictions are you talking about?

Ester: Addiction is when you have lost the power to choose whether or not you will act on that addiction. So how could any compulsion/dependency/addiction be good? Even if you're addicted to something as wholesome as brushing your teeth, I would think that would be pretty problematic if you're brushing your teeth fifty times a day. LOL. Addiction is an effect to a much deeper cause... the disconnection to one's wholeness. The most talked about addictions are to drugs and alcohol, but there are addictions to fear, worry, emotional turmoil, stress, plastic surgery... all effects of the same cause, disconnection from the wholeness of self... from the soul.

Me: Is food addiction good? What about sex addiction?

Ester: There are no addictions that are good. We can turn those addictions into gifts if they motivate us to go deeper and do the emotional and spiritual work required to turn them into gifts. Food addiction, sex addiction is just as devastating and tragic as crack addiction. You've seen a person weighing 85 pounds who's healthy body weight is 150 pounds; you've seen people weighing 300 pounds or more with high blood pressure, diabetes and all of the other symptoms of obesity, yet they can't stop eating; you have sex addicts who have sex with strangers on subways, in back alleys, bringing sexually transmitted diseases to their spouses and loved ones. So, no... there are no addictions that I would call good.

Me: Hmmmm... if you say so. Have you had any feedback from people that read the book that said it really changed their lives for the better?

Ester: All the time. I'm so grateful and humbled by that.

Me: That's really cool, and must be so fulfilling, Ester. If anything, that probably is the 13th step, knowing you helped other people. I wish I could say I helped a lot of people.

Ester: We all have our gifts. I'm sure you have yours as well.

Me: You have been on "Oprah", "The Tonight Show", "The View", and Ellen's show. None are as exciting as being on the Phile, right? Haha. Were you on those show's to talk about the book as well?

Ester: No, I was on those shows as a background vocalist for Rod Stewart and Bette Midler several times. I am looking forward to appearing on those shows as an author and expert on recovery. Nothing beats being on Phile. LOL.

Me: Suuurrreee. Was it fun doing those TV appearances, and is there one moment that really stuck out to you? I'm guessing Oprah.

Ester: Oprah was amazing. I've been on "Ellen" three times. She's very, very cool.

Me: You also have something to do with the book "The Secret", did I read that right?

Ester: No, my mentor, Michael Beckwith was one of the featured teachers on "The Secret".

Me: Oh, I must've misread it. Anyway, wasn't there a movie based on "The Secret"? Wait, I think I'm thinking of The Help.

Ester: Two totally different movies, my friend... you're hilarious. LOL. Hey, but The Help was certainly based on being committed to your vision, so they were similar in that respect.

Me: Do you think you'll be writing any other books, Ester?

Ester: Oh yeah, already have ideas for the next two.

Me: Apart from being an author and teacher you are also a singer, and a very good one at that. Does your music tie in with the book?

Ester: Yes it does.

Me: What kinda music do you like singing the best, and who did you listen to growing up?

Ester: I grew up listening to gospel, and all the Motown folks. I love inspirational music with R&B and jazz grooves.

Me: Did you write all the songs on your album "Child Above the Sun"?

Ester: No, wrote three of the songs on the CD.

Me: What does that title mean, Ester? Who is the child?

Ester: "Child Above The Sun" is the expression of God that rises above all the trauma, pain and sadness. She transcends the earthly problems into the realm of wholeness and infinite love. When I started writing the song, she was me. Then I realized she is all of us, boys and girls, men and women. 

Me: You travel and teach at seminars, right? Is that something you like to do a lot?

Ester: I love it.

Me: I was gonna ask you what came first, singing or writing or teaching, but I am guessing singing, as you toured with Rod Stewart and Bette Midler. I have a picture here with you singing with Rod...

Me: I bet those two experiences were different. Which did you prefer?

Ester: I started singing when I was two years old, so yeah, that came first. I enjoyed working with Rod because it was a rock concert, whereas Bette was more like a broadway play. Not as funky and loose, and a lot more structured.

Me: Is there anybody in particular you wish you can perform with?

Ester: James Taylor.

Me: If you could only do one thing, what would it be?

Ester: There's never only one thing, thank goodness, but if there were I would say just "enjoy."

Me: Alright, on the Phile I ask random questions thanks to Tabletopics. Are you ready? This is random, and I think I know what the answer is... what life experience has strengthened you the most?

Ester: That's actually really tough, because my strengthening exercises have all been so intense, powerful and just what I needed. The last one I just came through was crazy amazing... getting over the person that I thought was the love of my life... turned out to be an amazing gift.

Me: Ester, thanks so much for coming on the Phile. I asked better questions than all your other interviewers, right?

Ester: You're the BEST!

Me: Thanks. LOL. Go ahead and plug your website.

Ester: Esternicholson.com.

Me: Thanks again, Ester. Take care.

I think addictions are good, especially if you're addicted to the Phile. No, seriously, Ester's right. Addictions are bad. That about does it for this entry. Thanks to Ester for a great interview. The Phile will be back tomorrow with Robert Rial, the lead singer for the very cool band Bakelite 78 and then on Monday it's singer Robin McKelle. Spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye. Strawberry Blondes Forever!