There are a host of reasons why performing bodywork is so satisfying to me and the first can be dated back to grade school. We all have our recall stories that seem so seminal and often live in the distant past. I am no different. I recall having discussions with my mom and granny at the dinner table when I was around 8 years old, saying to them that I wanted to change the world, make it a happier place to be. I felt incredibly secure in my role at that age and simply let that feeling of serving the entire society around me guide my heart and actions.
As I grew up I kept that feeling of wanting to serve others but as my mind became more engaged with the myriad ways you could plan your life around this goal I got confused, overwhelmned, and more and more unsure that what I had carried around as motivation was just a pipe dream. After various educational and career paths throughout my 20’s and early 30’s I have finally found my home in the world of bodyworkers and that sense of doing right by others, making their lives shine a little brighter, and bringing society at large into more equilibrium is in fact a reality. There is great relief in seeing seeds that were stirring long ago, begin to blossom through direct engagement with other’s lifestuff.
I find the tactile, ever changing nature of my work completely engaging. I have a very active mind and a body that longs for movement and activity and when I have a new client come in, I too can feel more integration of my head, heart and hands while I listen to what their tissue needs and how they are responding to my work. Being in a line of work that requires presence of mind, a strong “feel” for things in your grasp and a heightened honing ability to interpret what may be shifting for your client as you work is all really exciting and energizing to me.
I recall a workshop I attended in 2009 where the teacher stressed the supreme importance of the person on the table…..that they in fact are the focus you need to have, they are it for the time being. I am not required to multitask at all!!! I simply allow my heart to fill with concentration and well wishes for the person I am working on and good results….less pain, a greater sense of wholeness and fortitude, increased movement and comfort in their frame…..the list of massage benefits is endless and changes as we move through various stages and levels of health in our lifetime.
I look forward to seeing how my bodywork changes over time and within the context of my life experiences. I promise to grow as a therapist and keep my senses alert so that I can best care for those who come and lay on my table in the future.
I also enjoy the various ways my own bodywork practice can branch off….whether it be research, teaching, always being a student (my favorite) and hopefully writing more about the wonders of bodywork and living in the skin we’re in. It is in honoring our shared human conditions, whether these be painful or relieving, that makes the work I do so solid, so sublte and so perfectly rewarding for me. Thank you universe, granny and everyone who nudged me along this path. I look forward to continuing to cruise along wherever it takes me next.
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