Medicine Reiki

The most recent spiritual director training module has been my absolute favorite, so far, by far!

Since the retreat weekend that ended at the beginning of this month, I have looked for ways to delve deeper into the mysteries of animal medicine (no, not veterinary medicine) and have done medicine card readings and animal medicine meditations. It has been wonderful, and really seemed to reflect who I am.

But I wanted more!

I found out about medicine reiki and decided to pursue it. As I type right now, I am still lightheaded and tingly after an hour-long attunement to the medicine reiki energies. I knew the moment it started because I began to feel the energy. After a while, I could tell that it seemed to be moving chakra to chakra. I first became sure of it when I felt it at my heart chakra.

Suddenly, I felt like I loved everyone and wanted to help people. Though, of course, I have felt that way before, the deep, sweet tenderness was new. The longing to help, the sense of imperative, was new. Or long-forgotten.

And it felt like I was surrounded by vibrating waves of energy, all over, but also concentrated, at times, in certain chakra areas. I also felt the presence or energy of friendly, loving, vibrant companions. At times, I felt like there was an angel in the room. But also some kind of "wise man/shaman" energy.

Also, I had images of several of the animals I have come to know as part of my collection of animal totems: deer, dog, bear and moose. But also lion, which I had not previously identified. I felt like I heard a lion's roar in my head and I had this sense of power/empowerment. Right at that time, "I Am Woman" started playing on the radio in my head, which made me giggle a bit.

There was a quiet joy and confidence, a sense of being grounded and centered. Like I was sitting on the earth, sticking my hands into rich soil. A few moments were infused with a sense of the holy, with sacredness. And I had the thought that I want to help other people feel that way. That sense of connection with the sacred. It was God's presence plus a sense of awe, of majesty!

At one point during this experience, I felt like I was taking a magic carpet ride. As if there were vibrations beneath me. And then, that gave way to a deep, deep sense of peace.

After that, I felt a little sleepy. And that felt so normal that I thought maybe I could get up to get my notepad to write some of this stuff down. Before that, I had felt a desire to get up, but either didn't really feel like I could or didn't really want to when I considered it. But this time, I did, and I felt dizzy. Lightheaded. The way I feel right now, half an hour later!

But also excited! A sense of limitless possibility. A renewal of my calling to heal but this time, paired with a certainty that whatever my destiny is (healing, included), it will be fulfilled. So there was a lovely feeling of wellbeing and peace. Tingly peace, I suppose.

I have had several attunements over the years. But none this powerful! I'm really grateful.

Closed for Repair

For the second day in a row, when I took my walk, I felt distant as I approached, stood in front of and walked by the trees. Even the one I call the love tree!

Today, I stood there a little longer in silence and considered what might be going on with me. I thought about the fact that I'd been quite prickly this week and had not felt well. And coincidently, I'd done some major healing work on an old childhood wound just this past Saturday. Hmm. Maybe not such a coinkidink, after all.

A few minutes went by and I began to perceive an energy barrier between me and the trees. I pictured my heart opening, which seemed like a way to tell myself that currently it was closed. Perhaps it has been closed for repair. And maybe that's what that energy barrier was all about.

My son was clingy for a couple of days this week. They are incredibly sensitive to what happens with us. I had thought it was because he didn't feel well, and indeed, we've both been under the weather. But perhaps we've both been clearing. Releasing.

I believe that when you heal, you heal backwards, forwards and sideways, so he would have benefited from the work I did, too.

I think that explains a lot of what we've been experiencing! I just didn't recognize it. Once you start healing, nothing ever presents itself clearly, even on exit, because it doesn't look the same.

Well, anyway, I suppose I'll stop writing and go do some active clearing!

"Worry pretends to be necessary!" ...

"But it serves no useful purpose."

This is a quote from Eckhart from last night's webinar with Oprah. I quite agree and it's one of those bad habits that can creep back in when you're sure you've banished it forever!

For the past few years, I've been eliminating worry by replacing worry thoughts with more positive ones. That has worked amazingly well! But worry thoughts do still tempt me from time to time.

I also liked what Eckhart said about complaining. It doesn't do any good whatsoever, but it does reinforce the feeling or conviction of being right at the expense of whoever has been declared wrong. I think wrong-making is most tempting to me when it comes to my son and his character.

I so want him to be kind and loving. And when he is unkind, I don't just say it's unkind (like Eckhart's point about stating a fact: "the soup is cold"), I make him wrong. And perhaps that's because of some avoided awareness of unkindness in myself. I've actually worked on that issue because it's so important to me, so the whole thing definitely is worth exploring a bit more.

One thing I think Eckhart fails to address is the possibility of healing!

We have conditioned responses and beliefs because of unhealed wounds, cellular memories that are buried alive within us. They can be healed, and when they are we move closer to our essence, to being who we truly are.

The Good Witch

I love Hallmark movies!!

So I was intrigued by a movie with a title like that ... the Good Witch. And I wondered if anything in the movie would conflict with my spirituality.

But I loved watching it! She was an intuitive, an herbalist, an aromatherapist, a crystal therapist, an animal whisperer, a healer. She knew instinctively what to tell each person who came to her, what to do to help them. And she opened up a shop filled with healing stuff.

She did what I do ... but larger!

She lived a life filled with enchantment. Or so it went until the town biddies started causing trouble.

I wanted to walk into her shop and be surrounded by all that healing energy, all that possibility.

I like the idea of having a healing room. Although I work with people by phone, I wish I had a dedicated space that was filled with healing energy. With crystals, essential oil blends, flower essences, elemental harmony and reiki energy. Until then, I wonder if it would be good to create a ritual for starting work each day. An invocation, maybe?

And then there's the enchantment...

I want me some more of that!

Right at the end of the year, I created a plan for this year that would include moments of magic, but then, never gave it another thought. I've had some mystical moments. But ... I think I'd like to create magic and enchantment and wonder, too.

My Year in Review

Have you taken a look back at the gifts brought by your experiences in 2007?

Since this is the year I got married and one of my best friends did, too, we've both said "what a difference a year makes" a few times this year!!

But other than that, I haven't yet taken a very careful, thoughtful look and today, I decided I would. My life coach, Ann Strong, who is a fabulous coach's coach, gave me a helpful list of questions to get me started...


Reviewing 2007:

Go wild! Acknowledge all your go(o)dness and greatness.One guideline: release criticism and focus on positives.

What did I accomplish that I am most proud of? Finding a wonderful new home to live in and going to Toronto to get legally married to the love of my life.

When did I have the most fun? Every time I was with Shelly. Even going to the grocery store is fun when we go together! (You think I'm in love?)

What experiences touched me the most? This question makes me think of my church. There have been so many wonderful experiences there that brought tears to my eyes!

What experiences were the most intimate? Looking into the eyes of my love and seeing her heart and her soul.

Most powerful? I have had some very powerful spiritual moments involving trees, moon, reiki, essential oils, nature walks, water, etc.

Most sacred? When we were saying our vows, in both the commitment ceremony in April and the legal one in November.

What difficult challenges did I meet successfully?
(1) I let go of a part-time job so that I would have more time to homeschool my son.

(2) I handled being outed at work by a co-worker.

(3) I found out that my wife and daughter weren't going to be able to move here this past summer as planned. We still don't know when they will be able to move.

In meeting the challenges, what did I do best? Relying on guidance and support in my relationship with God and in my marriage and support from my friends.

What lessons did I learn? That God is taking care of me all of the time, that He has good plans for me and that I can trust my life to unfold as it should.

How would I describe my power in those situations? I would say I did a lot of co-creating with God. The year as a whole was empowering!

But, you know, there are more questions that occur to me...

Here are questions I would ask as a healing practitioner...

1) What are you most grateful for that healed this year?
2) How did you become more of who you are at the core? In what ways are you living more from the essence of who you are?
3) What blocks were removed? What are you more open to, where are you more free?
4) Which limiting beliefs did you release? And what wonderful new beliefs did you develop as a result?
5) Were there any specific memories you remember healing? That you can now remember with peace?
6) How has healing empowered you this year?
7) In what ways did you surprise yourself that you would attribute to the healing work you've done?
8) What's next?