The mantra I have been saying to myself of late is “This too shall pass”.  I started saying this to myself recently, but today only consciously realised I’d been doing it.  Maybe this mantra has kept me afloat this week?  After all, our thoughts and words are powerful creators of our own reality.

This begs the question, do I need to censor myself when speaking to others?  Many people are finding these times very tough, on every level.   People are experiencing financial stress, health decisions, employment uncertainty, additional pressures from family and friends and general confusion.  The list goes on.  Do the words “This too shall pass” diminish or dismiss what people are experiencing, or do they go a little way in elevating that person out of the mud?  When I speak or text these words to another, my intention is always to elevate, to remind people that this situation can’t and won’t last forever.  Yes, it has gone on longer than we could possibly ever have imagined, we are all tired of being in lockdown, of being told what we can and can’t do.  But like everything in life, this current situation will have an end date.  The world will undoubtedly look different on the other side.  But does ‘different’ have to mean that things will be worse than they were before?

Last year was a year of realisation for many.  An opportunity to appreciate each other a little more, a reminder to be kind to others.  To take less for granted.  A chance to slow down a bit, and for many a pivotal opportunity to reassess how we had lived our lives up to that point.  For lots of us, it was a chance to reimagine our home space, to set up a little space for some daily self-care.  Plenty of people were thrown into the realisation that their jobs didn’t require them to be at a designated place each day, that they could just as effectively (and sometimes more efficiently) work from home.  People had a chance to connect on a different level with their kids and their pets.  Talk to, or even meet their neighbours for the very first time.  Maybe go for a walk in the middle of the day.  A chance to connect with nature.  For many, it was an opportunity to ‘get off the hamster wheel’, so to speak.

But it was tough for plenty of people too.   Casual workers and students were not able to work/study, and they had difficulty accessing financial support.  Performers, bodyworkers and lots of other professions were not able to practice and share their craft with the world.  Schools were closed.  People were separated from their family.  Many relationships suffered and the mental health of an unprecedented number of people took a dive for the worst.

Then, over the summer months, our situation here in Victoria improved, and for a little while it almost felt like 2020 never even happened.  Except it did, and then in 2021 the rollercoaster started again.  This time though the trauma from previous lockdowns rose quickly for many, with the realisation that we were ‘back there again’.  Back to working from home.  Back to home-schooling our kids.  Back to staying put.  To wearing masks.  To ‘checking in’ to supermarkets.  To hearing daily reports of doom and gloom.

We can push against all of this, a situation that we presently have very little control over, or we can ride the wave and take the best bits, even use them to create a brighter future.  What would you like your future beyond our current COVID situation to look like?  Will you resume where you left off, or will you make a change?  I’m choosing the reinvention option.  The upgrade.  The slower pace.  The smell-the-roses option.  I’m choosing to listen to the ideas of others and be open to a wide range of viewpoints.  To continue to re-create areas of my life that could use some of my precious energy.  To improve my relationships.  To keep my energetic body clear and vibrant.  To be of service to others. To elevate.  To laugh more.  To keep the energy light.  To struggle less (or preferably not at all).

For two decades now, Reiki has played a big part in my life.  Sometimes it’s more at the forefront, other times it is there in the background, just ‘waiting’ for me to return to it.  (And return I always do).  If you’re not aware of Reiki, put very simply, it is a spiritual healing practice that can be wonderful at supporting your system to return to its natural state of balance.  When we live in balance, the nervous system (and everything else) functions optimally.  We are more grounded and less reactive.  We need balance in our lives now more than ever before.  Reiki is a perfect tool for helping to cope with the ups and downs life throws at us.  To help us meet our challenges with much more ease and grace.  Reiki can be an effective tool for relaxation and enhanced wellbeing (amongst a long list of other benefits).   People often comment if their massage therapist is also Reiki trained; they can usually feel the difference in the ‘depth’ of the treatment, even if they can’t really put their finger on what that difference is.  One of the great things about Reiki though, is that it can also be offered and received remotely – which means that while we are not able to offer face-to-face treatments right now, people can still benefit from Reiki.

As an offering to our beautiful community, I will be setting aside some time each day to share ‘absent Reiki’ to those who would like to receive it.  All you need to do is email me (vanessa@kundalinihouse.com.au), type “Reiki please” in the subject line and your full name in the body of the email.  Then simply be open to receiving, knowing that some Reiki energy will be coming your way, each day.  You don’t need to do anything special, just trust that you will get what you need from the experience.   Reiki does no harm; as the receiver of Reiki, you will respond according to the wisdom of your own system.  You may like to set an intention (not necessary, but some people do).  You may notice the energy, you may not.  It doesn’t matter.  Just be open to trusting the process.

Reiki is now practiced widely in many hospitals and medical settings around the world to complement Western medicine.  As Reiki practitioners, this is a golden opportunity for us to share this time-tested modality, to offer balance and support to those who would like to receive it.  If this calls to you, it would a privilege to be of service.

 

“We are not held back by the love we didn’t receive in the past, but by the love we’re not extending in the present” – Marianne Williamson

 

With a background in remedial therapy, Vanessa commenced practicing Reiki in 2003 after experiencing a treatment that changed her entire perspective on the world as she knew it.  This treatment was only the beginning, and she has never looked back…