my 10th reiki client...

showed up today, after needing to reschedule by two hours.

Happily, so did client number nine, who woke up feeling so poorly she almost called to cancel.

I am so glad they both managed to make time for reiki, and now, so are they.

Both clients #9 and #10 reported seeing green and purple shapes behind their closed eyelids beneath my hands, which then turned to white light. I cannot ascertain how much of this is the effect of Karen Johns' chanting and how much is from my touch, but so long as we are working in tandem there is no real need to know.

I think it must be good, don't you? I do wish I knew what it all meant...and I am so curious to know what I will learn in the next level of training, and how much knowledge I will need to seek on my own. I am a moist and thirsty sponge when spoon fed knowledge, but I can also be a passionate sleuth and I love ferreting out new information. I am officially fascinated.

Client number 7 wrote to me last night in gratitude, imploring me never ever to take my gift for granted. Thank YOU, dear friend, and I won't, I promise! I feel so blessed to be able to do this work, and to inspire such positivity (this is precisely the sort of feedback I knew I would miss were I to continue to practice poverty law, where there is always a feeling of not being able to do enough).

Practicing reiki is so restful for me, so deeply peaceful and happy, which is a such a great gift to me. Since I lack the self discipline to meditate as regularly as I would like, I find that practicing reiki forces me at least to enter a meditative state, even if I only clear my mind for a couple of minutes at a time.

I am getting to know the rhythm of Saprema, the cd I use to guide and deepen my sessions, so that I almost do not need to use the clock anymore except to confirm that I know what time it is as I go along. I need to divide the hour into 27 parts so that it feels like a natural and unhurried flow to the client, and Karen's gorgeous, soulful chanting helps me to organize time while remaining in a peaceful state.

I love sitting down with each friend at the end of a session and listening to them recall the feelings, images and sensations they have just experienced in response to my touch. It is really exciting to hear and encourages me to go forward.

I leave town tomorrow to visit Hope Springs for the third meeting of my women's leadership collaborative. I have decided not to practice reiki there because I cannot possibly get to everyone and do not want to be seen as playing favorites in this politically and emotionally charged environment. I will miss it, not to mention the fact that we could surely use a little energy healing in this group! I will also miss rehearsing with my new friends in the Seven Hills Sinfonietta tomorrow evening and the following Wednesday, and I will very sadly miss my Sam's performance in the Bremen Town Musicians Thursday night.

But I'll be back in April, after a family trip East, fully charged and ready to resume my blogging and my beloved practices of yoga, violin and reiki. I will report back to you at that time.

Until then, namaste...