T’was the verdant month of May ’09 with all its sprouts and bloomings and a gentle Spring wind was wafting exotic seeds about. One such seed was delivered unto me by my friend and colleague, Mary Heckler, the Peace House Hostess extraordinaire at FOR. Mary is a moveable coffee break for me as we tend to chat about our personal interests throughout the work day wherever we bump into each other in the labyrinthine Peace manse. In this instance, Mary was breezing by my desk and paused to tell me about the interesting Reiki session she’d experienced with a lovely woman named Julie Connor. I don’t now recall all the particulars of the conversation, I only remember that my ears perked up and that I asked for Julie’s phone number. I also remember that I had some sort of instant recognition or intuition that this bit of information was significant for me, that this seed was fruit bearing, and so I jumped on the phone as soon as Mary walked off.
Why do I believe in the efficacy of Reiki ? Well, in an earlier blog post I wrote about my initial experience with a hot-handed master and mentioned that a psychic had foretold that I would explore and write about Reiki. That prediction may have spurred me on to call Julie, however, I believed in energy healing long before I met that psychic. I just didn’t know to call the tingling in the palms of my hands Reiki. Using that tingling sensation to cure my pets and my dolls and my baby sisters was just something I did when I was a little girl. And, when they told the Bible stories in Sunday school about Jesus healing the blind, the deaf, the sick, and raising Lazarus from the dead, I’d feel the tingle and think, ‘I bet I can do that.’ But thoughts like that were vanquished from my wee brain fairly quickly when the church made it clear that Jesus was the only son of God. Still, I retained a childlike wonder about the energy in my palms and, although I ceased to lay my hands on others, I remained aware that I could use that energy to recharge myself. Simply by facing my palms together so that they were close but not touching, I discovered that the tingling increased and re-energized me which was very useful during my work hard/play harder wayward adolescence. 
Yes, I was the cocktail waitress waiting for those whiskey sours at the service bar in a prayerful stance, but I wasn’t necessarily talking to God.
Come to think of it, one of my great friends from those waitressing days, Judi, the friend that I used to converse with about karma, past lives and astrology, has since become a Reiki master. Hmm?
Anyway, the point is that I’ve always had an innate or gut instinct about healing energy and the power of laying on of hands, and, so, I wanted more of that great ju-ju to help me through my breast cancer healing experience. But, alternative medicine was prohibitive on my budget, as it was I was straining to cover those daily shots of wheat grass and all those supplements and organic groceries, so I didn’t feel I could pursue Reiki or any healing modality that wasn’t on my insurance plan. Then, as if in answer to an unuttered prayer, Mary informed me about Julie Connor.
The voice that greeted me on the phone was like a Mother Earth hug, snuggly with warmth and compassion, which stimulated me to be forthright from the start. I told Julie my breast cancer story, that I’d had surgery and was in the process of determining the next best treatment; I also raved about Reiki, perhaps trying to shmooze, and then confided that my wallet was slim.
Julie’s response was to invite me to the next Reiki Share Circle at her home and told me the day and time.
I had no idea what a Reiki Share Circle was, but I was so excited by the prospects for healing that I showed up a day early for the event. The woman that greeted me at the door was the embodiment of the loving voice on the phone as well as emblematic of the name of her group – The Light Within Us. Julie appeared lit from within, a real golden beauty, and was so kind despite the fact that I’d barged into her home. She didn’t regard me as a crackpot or a stalker, but gently encouraged me to come back at the appropriate time. So, I did.
The next evening, I returned to the deep blue split level home with the sign by the walkway that read: The Light Within Us – Put the “Om” in your Home, and this time I was a few minutes late so there were several cars parked in the drive. I went around back as instructed and entered, took off my shoes as indicated by the collection of varied shoes on a mat by the door, and helped myself to a pair of soft purple slipper socks from the heap of clean slipper socks in the decorative basket. That basket of socks was the first sign of the quality and the attention to detail of the hostess. In the kitchen there were refreshments: chilled water, warm tea, cookies and fresh baked banana bread, with colorful cups and decorative napkins. I poured water into a bright green cup and headed into the living area where I was greeted by Julie’s familiar radiant smile and warm smiles from the eight or more people seated in the circle of comfy couches, pillows, and folding chairs. Someone passed the sign-in book and someone else passed a deck of Doreen Virtue‘s Angel Cards, as Julie introduced herself and told about Reiki and the format of the evening. This first night was all about Reiki though the announcements for upcoming special guests that included a crystal healer, a channeler, and a reflexologist made clear that the group was diversified. Julie then led us in a brief relaxing & centering meditation, and divided us into small groups with attention to dispersing the certified Reiki masters evenly among us. Three massage tables were brought out, the lights were dimmed, the music was turned on – Deva Premal’s Love is Space – and we proceeded to give and receive healing energy to each other.
On this first night, when it was my turn, one of the practitioners asked me for my intention. I heard myself declare, “Clarity,” and, as I said the word, I felt the supreme tension and anxiety I carried for not knowing what lay around the next bend in my healing journey. As I lay down and closed my eyes, I felt tears burn at the back of my eyelids, and so I coached myself to be in the moment and open my mind to receive. My fifteen minutes were spent trying to discern whose hands were generating the most heat, and, ultimately, relaxing in the total atmosphere of transporting music and love vibes. 
Whether one believes in the actual healing power of Reiki or not, I feel that the act of people coming together with genuine care and concern and with sincere hope and desire for each other’s well being can only boost immune systems. My experience that night was that I felt reinvigorated by the laying on of hands by virtual strangers; and, in the spirit of “it’s better to give than to receive,” the sharing component seemed to expand the effects for me.
At the end of the evening, we all stood to hold hands in a closing circle, and each stated an intention for the days to come. This time I declared, “Joy in the Journey.”
And, for $15 a pop, I vowed to myself to keep coming back.
(to be cont.) L.
ElleKelly's Blog 