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Wing And A Prayer

Author Lorna Byrne talks to SHELLEY MARSDEN about her angelic visions… - 16/12/08

Lorna Byrne is a unique woman, and the simply written ‘Angels In My Hair’ tells her fascinating story. The 54-year-old Dubliner, who now lives in the Irish countryside, describes her innate ability to communicate with angels, a gift she has had all her life and which she has also suffered for – her dreamy manner as she grew up led to family labelling her as ‘retarded’. Byrne tells not only of her impoverished upbring, meeting and marrying the love of her life only to lose him too young, but of the variety and beauty of the different angels she has met over the years. The book has not only touched readers deeply and helped many people through troubled times, but has caused a major sensation in the world of publishing, with a bidding war in America just won by Doubleday and foreign language rights snapped up across the globe. In Byrne’s homeland, her incredible account was the bestselling non-fiction book this year. I catch up with the softly spoken ‘Irish mystic’ to find out more…

You really communicate with angels?

From the moment I opened my eyes, I saw them around my parents, even though I didn’t know what they were because I was so young. They are there every day, it’s normal for me, though I know it’s not for everyone else. It makes me smile when people tell me they didn’t realise they had an angel. I’ve never seen anyone without a guardian angel – no matter what colour, what nationality, what faith.

How do they appear to you?

If I’m walking down the road and lots of people are coming towards me, I would see a beam of light about three steps behind them, and on occasions that beam of light would open up and a guardian angel would show itself to me. I see other angels which I call the ‘white angels’. They’re the helpers, helping us to do the normal, everyday things we take for granted.

Are you never alone, then?

No, and that is what we need to remember – we are never, ever alone, no matter how down we are on ourselves, or happy. No matter what is happening in your life, your guardian angel never leaves you, not even for a second. Your guardian angel allows other angels in all the time, and they come and go.

Did angels prompt you to write this book?

Yes, god and the angels told me when I was a little girl that I would write about my experiences. ‘Angels In My Hair’ is only a small section of it; I’m already working on the second book. People have so many questions after reading that first book, and it’s helped people, they say they have more confidence, they aren’t so afraid any more. It has even made the sceptics question things.

For the full interview, buy a copy of the Irish World at your local newsagent or click HERE to buy a copy online for only 50p!

Angels In My Hair (Century/Random House £12.99) is out now. Visit www.lornabyrne.com