Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!

     What a great morning! Hot, freshly ground coffee. Freshly baked bread. A little Schlock Mercenary to accompany. And now my first post on the new computer.
       The week before last my computer gave up the ghost. Oh, it would turn on; it just wouldn't do much after that. I tried finishing up a solar eclipse post on the 22nd of August and it just laughed at me. I would do the writing on my iPad, then go to the computer to add the pictures when I could get it to work. Two hours later, no finish in sight. It was time.
     So today is Christmas, three months early. I hope the joy that is abounding in my house spills out to you. Have a great Thursday and I'll get back to regular posting once I get all of the computer stuff up and running. Tomorrow sound good to you? It's a date.

Enneagram Type 5- The Investigator

image from https://strangenotions.com/einstein-god/

    When I think of a Type 5, my mind goes immediately to an absent minded professor- someone who thinks and plans their way through life. A five is interested in knowing things and feels more secure when they know them deeply. They are the obvious 'head' person, living a full, productive, satisfying life completely in their minds.

Reiki in the Movies at Last! Magic Mike XXL

  What better way to start a weekend than with this great picture from Yesmovies.
     Now, I must admit, I've never seen Magic Mike XXL, but when I was clicking around the web this morning looking for something different about reiki, these gorgeous hunks popped up. The character, Ken, has level three reiki. Too cool!
     Here is an article from Cosmo and one from Bustle about the movie and reiki. No wonder more and more people know what I'm talking about when I say I'm a reiki master.

Enneagram Type 4: The Romantic

    When I think of a type 4, I think moody, artistic, creative, the need to be distinctive. This photo of Bob Dylan from the New York Times just captures the feeling of a Four. They create so much beauty just by being willing to embrace the darkness in life.
     Being friends with a Four can be a wild ride. As a Two, I always want to fix things and make you feel better. My friends who are Fours don't want to be fixed, in fact, they tend to create more chaos for themselves because in sadness and strife they have more energy and creativity.

Get Rid of the Pain in Your Neck: Beneficial aligning posture exercises

   

      As I've mentioned before, in 1989 I was in a significant auto accident. It left me with a cervical vertebra that doesn't move quite right. This means I need to take exquisite care of my neck and can still have problems.

     I've tried many different things over the years, but these are by far the best exercises I found. They  have made a great difference for me. They keep my neck supple and moveable, even though it still has bad days.

Beneficial aligning posture exercises 

*Do 1-3 sets, 10-15 reps, everyday when possible 

-shoulder rows backwards motion 

-shoulder squeeze (chest in an upwards motion)

-head side to side (keeping shoulders squared in place, I call this one ‘tick tock’)

-overhead single side stretch (hold each rep for 10 sec, do 3 sets)

-doorframe stretch (forearms on doorframe and lean into it till you feel the stretch, hold for 20-30 seconds)

-rag doll (hold for 30 sec, no bounce)

-standing/stretching backward bend (hold for 20-30 sec)

-chin tuck (neck backward)

-chin tuck with backward tilt-up

-turn head side to side/left to right, trying to stretch a little farther each time

-turn head to one side as far as it will comfortably go and then rock head up and down 10 times, then switch to the other side and do it 10 times, repeat if time allows.

I like to do these exercises when I listen to a podcast or a book on tape. The reward entices me back each day—I hope it does for you as well. Enjoy a pain free neck! 

Enneagram Type Three: The Achiever

   This comic by Clare Cherikoff says it all! Type Threes are the achievers. They are often good looking, have a presence that helps them stand out from the crowd, and measure their lives by how successful they are.
     I was fortunate to be part of a long standing book group run by a Three, and ably assisted by another Three. We always had the next book picked out early, everything was on time, and she could somehow attract more people when others moved on. When she got a new job and leadership of the group passed to a Seven, the group began to struggle. Nothing was wrong, but slowly people stopped coming. When the other Three withdrew,

Non- Dual Thinking: How to be of two minds and enjoy it

       What if I told you that one of the deepest, most abstruse concepts I ever learned, I first heard about from a fifth grader? I was working with a pair of Speech and Drama club members on how to improv.   It was their first foray into duo improv and it was not going well. After I heard one of them in the hall complaining abut the other, "doesn't he get yes, and?" Of course I had no idea what they were talking about. All I knew was that the two of them just couldn't get along, couldn't decide on an idea during their prep time.
     Since I was so new and not ready to relinquish any authority, I waited until after practice to ask the coach. She said the idea behind 'yes, and' is that anything your partner says, even if it is not what you agreed to in the prep, you say 'yes, and...' Once you start playing around with it, what a powerful notion it becomes. The sky is falling. Yes, and it is made of chicken soup. Yes, and I'm allergic to chicken. Yes, and I have a super vaccine. Yes, and I'm deathly afraid of shots.
      Everything becomes legal. Everything becomes within bounds. Too much fun for a way outside the box person like me! The further I get into energy medicine and meditation, the easier this becomes. One is not either right or wrong, but can be both and neither at the same time. In my spiritual learning it's called non-dual thinking.  Wikipedia defines nondualism as "a mature state of consciousness, in which the dichotomy of I-other is 'transcended,' and awareness is described as 'centerless' and 'without dichotomies.' Simply speaking, we're both right. In the past I've written about it here and here. This article from the Huffington Post has Richard Rohr's description.
     If you'd really like to get a feel for this, I love Melinda Butch-Kovacic's Tedx talk on Polarity thinking. She gives a great real life example of how to avoid the traps of dual or black and white thinking.

Gaynor Faye- Our next Reiki Celebrity!

    When I first took reiki, my teacher, JoAnn Utley, stressed the importance of 'gathering evidence.' Since many of us never get to see the reiki energy, it is important to gather the evidence of reiki working in our lives and those around us.
      My next piece of evidence is British soap opera actress, Gaynor Faye. This article from Now Magazine talks about how she works on "friends and family." I love how reiki is becoming more and more mainstream. Enjoy your weekend!

Enneagram Type One Videos

     I left the videos out of the Enneagram Type One post. Here are two that I really enjoyed.

Enneagram Type 2: The Helper

from here

    When you try to visualize a Type Two, think Dori from Finding Nemo. Always super helpful, super cheerful, loving, caring, and above all, fixing things for you. As a Two myself, I can tell you that I'm great to be around if you want help on your project, but much more difficult if you just want to tell your story because I want to fix whatever the problem is. Also, I'm told my happiness before the first cup of coffee is absolutely insufferable.

More Thoughts on Community

     I'm sitting under a tree while the 9-11 year olds at my Y wash the car. Child labor at it's finest.
      This week the 9 and ups are having a car wash and bake sale at the Lynn Street Y. My car was one of the first to be washed (or, perhaps better said, go under the knife). Though the kids were supervised, the camp counselors let them learn through doing while washing to my beloved car, Sophia (yes, my car is named after wisdom! She's a smart lady with cameras to tell me if I'm backing into someone). It was almost a physical pain when one of the kids bounced a bucket off her hood. But it was so worth it. These were kids who were gaining up time in the pool and gym to wash cars so they could earn money for field trips. The mom in me so approves!
     I enjoyed spending time with the campers, talking about hair cuts and field trips. All that lovely young energy was wonderful. Again and again, I find community and it's importance. Hopefully I'll find no dent in the hood, but if it's there, that's a small price to pay.

Doctor Oz and the Healing Powers of Reiki

    Our next reiki celebrity is Dr. Oz. I just love how this man's genial personality and desire to heal spills over and gives credibility to what many consider a fringe healing method. This article from the International Association of Reiki Professionals sums it up beautifully.

Enneagram Overview and Type One

from here

   Have you ever looked at someone and thought 'why are they doing that?'
      I think that is the basic state of existence since the only head we can get into is our own. When I am trying to figure out people, or, better yet, the client in front of me, I turn to the enneagram. It is a tool for understanding how we come to the crazy decisions we all make. The enneagram describes internal energies expressed through outward actions. Think of a habit you just can't break, or the thing that you do that everyone around you asks you to stop. From my life, it's over helping. The first words in my mind when someone describes a problem are always 'how can I help?' After learning the Enneagram, now I keep offers to help inside (some times).

What We Value

      Have you ever tried to explain something you 'know,' only to realize what you 'know' is just a feeling, not knowledge? How frustrating! Last week, I was trying to explain Patreon, a website that allows creators to get paid for their work. It's a great concept to help bloggers, YouTube creators, and artists of all stripes get funded so they can keep creating the content we love. Each month I pay for webcomics, writers,  and podcasters works that I access for free on the internet and through the library. It feels powerful to help them create what I love.
     So there I was, trying to persuade my friends of the importance of free information, and that people will pay for it if you set things up properly.  I was (trying to) explain my new Patreon account. I set up the account because I love to make things. How fortunate to be born in an era where there are so many free venues to show my creations! One of my YouTube videos has over 800,000 views and weekly I get questions through the comments section and through email. Wouldn't it be great to get paid for it?

Chef Sean Brock practices reiki!

     I couldn't believe my eyes. Reiki in the New York Times. The article talks about chef Sean Brock and his recovery from post traumatic stress disorder. They say "he spends a few hours a day in self-care activities like meditation and reiki." Just assuming everyone who reads the article knows what reiki is. We live in great times my friends! Happy Saturday!

May I? Can I? Should I?

    Several years ago I took a great class from Peaceful Meadow Retreat. The Hanna Kroeger 1 class taught me two very important things. The first was that it was not for me. I loved the class, but it was not at all what my clients come to see me for. They come for peace, not for supplements. The second is three simple questions that changed my practice and how I approach life.
     May I? Can I? Should I?
     Who knew that six words could be so profound?
     Let's consider our first question 'may I?' When you ask yourself this, it is all about permission. Do you have permission to work on this person or object?

What is Community? Lessons from a broken bike

    On Tuesday my bike found a piece of glass in the road and I got a flat tire. I was only a mile and a half from my house, so it was no big deal. Since severe thunderstorms were starting to move into the area, I had to get home as quickly as possible. It took about a half hour (boy do we have big hills!) so I had loads of time to think.
     At first I was thinking 'who would you trust if they stopped to help you?' It was strange. I usually trust everyone, enough so that it makes my husband nervous. After a while, I moved on to 'why is no one stopping to help?'

Too Much Force!

    Working with the human body is a touchy thing in more ways than one. When we adjust in yoga or touch in healing there is always the possibility of harming the person you are trying to help. There is nothing more irritating than the practitioner pressing into your body when they should be gently laying on hands or an instructor forcing your body into a position it does not want to take.
     Just yesterday I experienced something amazing. My Tai Chi teacher gave me a hand up from the floor. Now this is a man who has made a career out of breaking people. He has forgotten more about martial arts than most black belts ever learn. But when he gave me a hand up off the floor, it was with the perfect amount of force, like the lift was evenly distributed throughout my entire body, not just through my hands to my shoulders, to the body. He always jokes that if you know how to cause pain, you also know how to heal.
     How do we learn to do the same thing? First by becoming more aware of your body and it's edges. Those edges might be your hands, clothes, hair, or a healing accessory (like the lotion bottle of a massage therapist). If any part of you touches your client it should be intentional. Not only does it remove your client from the experience, but it can become actively irritating (when the yoga instructor's long hair touches you).
      Once you've learned your edges, it's time to discover your power. Press your hands together as hard as you can (according to NASA this is force is between 30-50 pounds). Now, push half as hard (between 15-25 pounds). Now, half as hard again (7.5-12.5 pounds). That last one is as hard as you should ever push when working with a client or student. Granted these are averages, but the exercise I described works very well in practice. And on that note, just like getting to Caragie Hall, the best solution learning to adjust poses is to practice.
       The final hurdle is forming a relationship. Before touching a client in a healing session or a student in a yoga class, always get permission first. Part of this process is making sure the person you are working with will tell you to stop if it is irritating or begins to hurt. Go into it gently. Sometimes, you may need to have the discussion several times in one session.
      This week's video is about the Hanna Kroeger technique for resetting the brain stem. In it you gently manipulate the client's head to reset the brain stem. It is the perfect way to practice your use of gentle force.

Command Presence

      Command presence. Sounds like something for a police officer or military man. In police work, it's what keeps you alive. For the military, it's what keeps your unit focused and on task amidst destruction and devastation. But how does this fit into the gentle framework of energy healing?
Our first problem is in the idea that healing is gentle. Healing requires change, both accepting that change is necessary and that it is beneficial. To the client, change can be a scary thing, even when the intellect is saying it's safe. Our job as healers is to provide the activation energy. In chemistry it's the minimum quantity of energy that the reacting species must possess in order to undergo a specified reaction. For our purposes, it is the force required to get a change from what you are doing to what you want to do. Command presence is that force. It is the energy of a parent enforcing rules and boundaries or the energy a trusted policeman uses to break up an incipient fight.
     Each time I teach reiki and Hanna Kroeger techniques, it also becomes a class in command presence. Both require the healer to take charge and supply the activation energy to bring about change, even if the change is to relax. It makes everthing feel safe. And it is teachable. Finding the balance between command presence (authority, trust, respect) and bullying (loud, ordering, controlling) is best done with a trusted teacher aloud. In my first year of playing with reiki, I tried so hard to force or push the energy. It took time to realize how to relax and let it happen while being in control. Like playing with a group of first graders. The teacher supplies the framework, the kids supply the energy.
     But I hear you say, I'm not there with you, how do I work on command presence? I think there are two facets to work on. The first is laying in the groundwork. It is easier to act with confidence and authority when you have a strong body, mind, and spirit. Sleep and exercise are essential. Use clothing that fits well and looks good to bolster your confidence. Act with honor and integrity so that worry does not cloud your spirit.
The second area is discipline. It's like a muscle that developes the more you use it. The nice thing is that working on one discipline translates to others. Take a cold shower, get out of be a half hour earlier, fast for a day (or a meal), be kind to other drivers (no matter what), meditate at the same time each day. Just find something that is difficult, speaks to you, and do it, no questions asked. I highly recommend the book, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth by Richard J. Foster. He reminds us that discipline is not all about giving up stuff, rather moving toward becoming the person you were divinely created to be.
     Command presence really came into focus when I made this video about Hanna Kroeger methods for healing the pituitary. It's all about confidence and using your intuition to support and enhance pituitary function. If you have any ideas about command presence or stories to share, please leave a comment below.

Non-dual Thinking

     Three years ago, in a fit of grace, I gave up figuring things out. You know how something happens- your back goes out, your child fails out, someone is unkind to you- then you spend hours and hours replaying the event trying to decide why it happened or how you could have (woulda, shoulda) changed the outcome. I decided that it was a waste of my time when I'll never know the true answer.
     What was a neat side effect was how it opened my mind more easily to non-dual thinking, being able to hold two opposite things as true. Dualism is all about choosing sides; men are better than women, beauty is better than ugliness, America is better than everybody else. Non-dual thinking can see each sex as even, the beauty in ugliness, and that every country is both good and bad at the same time.
      As an energy healer, there is a lot of letting go. Allopathic (MD) medicine says this, chiropractic (DC) says that, Naturopathic (ND) offers a different perspective, and what about the osteopaths (DO)? Often my experiences as a reiki practitioner and teacher say something else entirely. I think we are probably all right and wrong at the same time. It all comes down to language and accepting that each client is completely different.
      This week I've been preparing for my monthly reiki share. The class on the pineal and pituitary glands is mostly written, house mostly tidy, accompanying YouTube video posted. As I was working on the video I struggled to communicate the function of the pineal gland. Modern medicine says it is an 'atrophied photoreceptor' that secretes melatonin and has 'an exalted status in the realm of pseudoscience' (quotes from Wikipedia). Hanna Kroeger said that the pineal gland is the door to God's grace (Seven Spiritual Causes of Ill Health). But what is the difference between atrophied photoreceptor and the third eye?
     For me it is all in the experience. When I perform the maneuver to open the pineal gland, I can feel the change in my meditation, emotional stability, and ability to go to sleep. Clients have reported similar experiences. Calling things pseudoscience is just fear looking at the undiscovered reality that we swim in.  Who could fund the study to confirm this and how could you control for other factors. I have no idea, so instead I choose to hold both ideas gently at the same time. Non-dual thinking to the rescue!