I cannot even begin to express what a grace it is to be able to say that. For me, massage therapy is not just a job, but rather part of my whole way of being, part of what I describe as my calling. I also love learning the stories and events that lead people to their callings, so wanted to share a bit of mine, following my journey of learning the heart, science, and the soul of massage.
As a child, I knew my body as a container for all my fears, external chaos, and restless energy. Fear would give me bellyaches, loud noises and over-stimulating events would bring me to tears, and I ended up feeling scattered in pieces. I didn’t know what I needed to calm my spirit and glue my parts back together.
When I was out of sorts, Grandma Gertie would hold me on her lap and roll my earlobes in her soft fingers. She’d pull my arms close to my chest and firmly squeeze me, and I felt my body melt into her lap. I was restless and yearning for care, and her touch told me that I was loved in that moment.
As a young girl, I found freedom in dance and movement. It was also a way to organize all that was disordered and confusing. By moving my limbs and torso through space, I discovered the clear expression of messy and bold emotion and an understanding of what was inside and outside of my body.
When I found myself on a massage therapist’s table due to overuse injuries, I was afraid of losing my ability to dance and thus my sanity. Luckily, I didn’t! Instead, through receiving therapeutic touch, I realized a new way of moving in my body and began to understand the beautiful architecture of human anatomy.
Years later, as a young adult, I came face to face with depression. My inner world crumbled in a million tiny pieces, and my nerves frayed like the hem of an old sweater. I didn’t know this soul, this body, this mind. I felt detached, separated, and desperate.
Once again, I returned to massage therapy, laying myself down, limp, to receive compassionate touch and craniosacral therapy. As my body experienced deep listening and gentle touch, I sensed my nervous system being reset. Once again, I could take a deep breath. I felt like someone had touched my spirit with healing balm.
I became a massage therapist simply because it was the only work that made sense to me. All that I’ve learned about the heart, science, and soul of massage feeds into who I am and what I do. I am not in this work to heal my clients, but to provide the space, support, and invitation for healing to occur. And it does.
I love dewy cobwebs in the morning light, driving the back roads, sun on my face, the grass beneath my feet, roasting veggies and serving them up to my friends.
I avoid large crowds, caves, and Facebook.
I delight in swinging my hips to the rhythm of good tunes or the vibrations of the earth.
I aspire to welcome the tears as much as the laughter.
I believe that our deepest love comes from the Spirit that formed us.
And so, in the spirit of that, I offer this blessing:
May we all see and fall in love with our unique and truest selves.
Istanbul, Turkey 2014
If you have any questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you.