The Roots of Gratitude Part II

Having a personal practice of giving gratitude is immensely important and can benefit not only our outlook on life but can also have physical and emotional benefits that in turn improve our relationships with people and things.  Being grateful as a family can also uplift each member and bring our relationships closer together.  There is no doubt that this practice is magical and beautiful.

Today, the day in which we celebrate the American Thanksgiving Holiday, I am conflicted with deep and intense emotions.  Many of us are given time off of work and school to spend with our loved ones. I have spent most Thanksgivings with my family, laughing, playing, eating and enjoying each other's presence. Yet, as I've learned through my formal and informal education the truth behind the sugar coated Pilgrims and Indians story that was spoon fed to me as a child, I find it harder and harder to just smile and wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. 

I believe that we must look deeply at our own personal pain and suffering so that we may release and heal in our own lives.  I also believe the same is needed for looking deeply at the pain and suffering that exists in the history of this holiday. We must acknowledge that this day, even though for many of us, in this day and age it embodies family togetherness, deep gratitude, warm connections, sharing, love and wonderful food, it is based on a dark, greed filled tragedy and massacre of the native people who were living here when the colonizers arrived.  If we do not embrace the true nature of this holiday, we cannot embrace ourselves wholly.  It is painful to admit that some of our own ancestors participated in the atrocities that history books wish to erase from our memories. It is difficult work to acknowledge that entire cultures and people were destroyed for the benefit of our own ancestors. Yet through bringing this truth to light and embracing it, we can take responsibility and there can be forgiveness, healing and peace for all.  Of course there exist current systems and social practices that perpetuate the energy embodied by the colonizers and that also must be acknowledged and addressed, but on an energetic level for the healing of those murdered and displaced, we can offer the unadulterated truth.

Related articles:

• Native Circle's "The Thanksgiving Myth"
• The Black Agenda Report's "The End of American Thanksgivings: A Cause for Universal Rejoicing"
• Mitchel Cohen's "Why I Hate Thanksgiving"

Be Thankful. Be Truthful. Be Open. Be Humble.

The photo for this post is from Free Digital Photos by Photokanok.

Preparing For Our Breaking Point

When I reach my breaking point, sometimes I don't feel like there is any valid "reason" for it.  I just feel plain terrible and have this feeling in me that nobody should feel happy if I'm feeling so miserable.  Or I feel an irrational sense of control towards those around me.  Wednesday, December 28th, those who crossed my path were innocent victims to the seething anger I was feeling.  I had lost control of this emotion and despite all my attempts to be mindful, I felt such an overwhelming sense of frustration that I couldn't hear my own mindfulness bell. There is a feeling I get when I know I should make another choice, when I know I should let go and change my current course but on Wednesday, I wasn't listening to it and pushed it aside, clinging to my hurt and frustration.  I even left the house and tried to calm myself in nature.  This helped a little but there was something in me that was rigid, firm, unbending and unwilling to compromise.  It wasn't until after raising my voice at my sweet little girl and seeing the fear in her eyes that I began to soften.  I remember having that same fear and disappointment when I was yelled at as a child and it had such a severe affect on me.  I vowed I would never do it to my own child.  And here I was, again.  It has been very few times but they are there.  My highest self may be present when I have these outbursts but she's not in the driver's seat.  It felt more like the child in me who needed to be heard and listened to was behind the wheel, making all the decisions.  The biggest problem is that I am not a child anymore and must find it within me to be the adult, functioning from my highest self.

I do believe that repair is critical after moments like the one I had on the 28th but I don't think it's enough.  Or we could walk around treating people terribly and then apologize and think that's ok to do over and over again.  I am determined to work on myself and look into my core to see what it is that is brewing inside of me so I can have a deeper understanding and make the changes I need to.  This might be through therapy, healing on a physical level or noting if lunar-menstrual cycles have anything to do with it and plan accordingly... awareness of self, mindfulness of self.  Preparing myself for the moments when I am unable to hear the mindfulness bell.

I have been repairing with my daughter for the last few days, being kind and attentive but not giving in to our regular rules.  Trying to be more understanding when she acts out, who knows, maybe she's imitating my own behavior.  She is a vivid mirror.  I am trying to breathe into the sensations I have within me to see where they are coming from and how I can move forward so that I can minimize and ultimately eliminate these breakdowns in mindfulness. It doesn't mean I won't get angry or have these feelings again, but I don't want to inflict pain on those I love.

I remind myself of my imperfection.  I take responsibility for my actions.  I breathe into my core being and promise to do my best.

Breathe. Smile. Understand Yourself. Have Patience.

The photo for this post if from Graur Codrin's profile on Free Digital Photos.

Reiki, the next step?

I have had a long time passion for health and wellness starting in 1998 when I worked part-time as a cashier in a health food store in Greensboro, NC. I had just officially become a vegetarian (and continued as one for the next 11 years...) I had also been suffering from chronic sinus infections for a very long time and western, allopathic doctors just kept giving me antibiotics that weren't curing the source of the problem. I found the natural remedies to finally help me get to the root of the problem!

I spent a good part of the next decade learning about herbal remedies, dietary influences and the mind-body connection to how my body was able to heal itself and be healthy, physically and emotionally. I began eating organic food and finally tasting, I mean really tasting, apples and tomatoes as they should be - full of flavor! I also started dancing, doing yoga and meditating regularly and could finally take charge of my life and health in a way that I never had felt before.

In 2003, I decided to move back to Georgia after living in California for 3 year and when I left I was planning to study Ayurveda but got derailed at the core because of fear but also because I decided to focus on other important areas of my life after meeting my husband...

I had heard of reiki and was always intrigued. I got attuned to the first level when I was first back in Atlanta. I used it mostly for self healing on and off for the next several years. This past November I started to feel that strong push towards making a career in health in wellness again. I have now made some short-term plans and long term plans to finally be able help others begin their path of healing their bodies, minds and spirits. The short-term plan: Reiki! I became a reiki master June of this year. The long-term plans, TBD... acupuncture? Life Coach? Not sure! There are so many different modalities and exercises that can assist us in living to our fullest potential and heal ourselves at a deep core level.

Ok, so finally, to the primary focus of this post: Reiki. It is one of the most beautiful, subtle yet powerful, modalities I have encountered. It can be beneficial for soooo many things it's unbelievable, on the physical, emotional and spiritual level. My personal experience has been mostly emotional and spiritual healing but I've heard of many testimonies of the physical benefits as well.

Reiki is simply spiritually guided life energy or channeled cosmic energy from the universe for the purpose of balancing the subtle energies within our bodies. "Rei" is universal, spiritual consciousness and "Ki" is life energy or universal life force. We all carry within us some level of reiki in the sense that when we get hurt we might rub our wound, or a mother will kiss her child's injury. The different levels of reiki attunements essentially open up the reiki practitioner's chakras to allow for a stronger flow of the energy and there are symbols that also help boost the level of energy or focus the energy for more specific purposes.

A person receiving reiki will usually be lying on a massage type table fully clothed. The reiki practitioner will clarify if the client wants to be touched or not and will then place her hands on or just above the 7 major chakra energy centers of the body, as well as some smaller ones on the legs and arms. The receiver may or may not feel the energy flowing out of the practitioners hands and may have other sensations or may not have any physical sensation at all during the treatment. There may be more of an emotional cleansing with the resurfacing of old memories, emotions or experiences that need to be looked at or processed in either a conscious or unconscious way in order to release, grow, evolve and heal so that he/she can move forward.

There is soooo much more to reiki but this is a brief introduction. I am also still learning as I delve into the beginning of what I hope will be a long journey of bringing healing into my life and those who want to share it with me..... So, I currently can see clients in a Marietta, GA or at a client's home in the metro Atlanta area.

Breathe, Smile, Laugh.