Written by Jennifer Charlinski BA, RT-CRA
Published in the Fall 2014 edition of The Canadian Reiki Association’s Magazine
Ah sweet sixteen! Youth and vitality on your doorstep, newfound freedoms on the brink of materializing before your eyes and a new ensemble of firsts ready to present themselves.
It’s January 24th, 2014 and my one and only daughter embarks on a new rite of passage today as she celebrates her sixteenth birthday. I’m, as expectedly so, full of nostalgia and pride as I reminisce about bringing her home from the hospital and gently placing this tiny precious being into her beautiful white ruffle ladened crib. My thoughts, as if on an old film reel, evoke images of her princess and glam girl days right up to present day time as I marvel at the extraordinary young lady standing before me. My heart indeed aches for the innocence and simplicity of yesteryear while simultaneously gushes with insurmountable amounts of pride for what has already been achieved.
It’s easy to regard some birthday milestones as joyous occasions, such as the ones we experience in our youth, turning one, five, sixteen and twenty-one to name only a few, but indisputably, it is just as easy to hold contempt and disdain for the more mature birthday milestones which are, generally speaking, anything after 30 years old.
The passing of time is no doubt a blessing and a curse for most. Though I joylessly celebrated my daughter’s 16th milestone I heard that little voice in my head reminding me that my own birthday milestone was right around the corner, six months to the day to be exact, I’ll turn the dreaded 4-0. But contrary to what readers may be expecting to read next, I told myself that’s its perfectly ok. After all, I’ve already watched countless family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances hit forty and remain relatively unscathed. Actually to be honest, I have no issues with the age of 40. It’s truly only a number that shows up on my driver’s license and health card. It’s not the precursor for doom and gloom that many people believe. I know that as long as I have an abundance of love, health and happiness in my life that any negative associations with age are obsolete, at least from my vantage point. Reiki taught me this; pure and simple! At 34 years old I discovered a form of transformational energy healing that ignited an innate passion for alternative healing with Reiki. Today I’m a dedicated Reiki Master, utterly humbled by its miraculous abilities to soothe and heal the mind, body and soul.
Anxiety and stress are prevalent in our lives today and act as cornerstones for many diseases and illnesses. Many people seek out quick fixes for conquering daily stresses and emotional burdens such as ageing. When the first signs of premature ageing rear their ugly heads its endless trips to the drugstore for over the counter remedies, visits with cosmetic surgeons and so forth for many of us, which though completely understandable and acceptable, can ultimately be taxing on the psyche, ultimately leading to an entire array of emotion that perpetuates the very thing we’re trying to avoid…ageing.
We naturally age and though acceptance of this natural phenomenon may well be the key to ageing gracefully; subsequently reducing the toll of stress on our bodies, I don’t really expect people to discontinue their relentless search for the fountain of youth, be it as it is, we simply live in a photo shopped and keep up with the Jones’ type of reality. However, we can offer ourselves Reiki to help realign our focus and ease the environmental burdens that society places on people to look forever youthful. There’s truth to the expression “beauty comes from within”.
Through the practice of daily Reiki self-care I have enabled myself to mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually to strengthen my body from the inside out. Energetically clearing myself of unbeneficial energies, toxins and matter. As a morning ritual I reserve 10-15 minutes to connect myself to the cosmos above my head and the earth below my feet. These few moments have created an ever growing sense of love, peace and acceptance for myself within that I believe manifests on the outside. I’ve been able to clear energy blockages and harmful energies from my body through a simplistic Reiki meditation. The following outlines a step by step explanation:
Firstly, sit comfortably, close your eyes and take 3 slow deep breaths. Then visualise your own personal flame growing and expanding with each subsequent breath in your solar plexus area. This flame burns at both ends bound together by our spiralling yellow solar plexus chakra. With each inhale slowly envision one end of the flame rising up, little by little, into your heart centre, neck, and then crown chakra. Eventually breathe the flame out the top of your head and up toward the cosmos. In a few moments, breathe the opposite end of the flame down through your root chakra, down each leg and eventually down and out the bottoms of each foot into the crystal like straws attached to the soles of your feet that penetrate deep down into the crystal core of Mother Earth. The cosmos and earth energies are connected via your own personal flame. Now, send the energies from your own personal flame throughout your entire body. Spend a few additional minutes relaxing into this connection and absorbing the calm that the process of connection offers us.
Secondly, evoke the CKR symbol three times. Draw it in your mind’s eye and silently chant the words. Call upon your guides and angels if you wish for them to guide and guard you. At this point I intend for Reiki to channel through my crown chakra and wash away all unbeneficial energies while clearing out any blockages. I envision universal life force energy penetrating through the top of my head and cascading down the length of my body two times. The first time clears and releases and the second time fills every single organ, fibre and cell with pure Reiki light and healing.
Thirdly, give thanks to the process!
Reiki enables us to keep our bodies healthy and glowing on the inside, thus enabling us to radiate beauty, health and vitality on the outside. It eases our woes of ageing by releasing our anxieties about getting older, in turn reducing our stresses that often lead to illness. It truly allows one to age gracefully…the way nature intended.
All milestones are worthy of celebration and/or honor. Reaching a milestone conjures up past reflection and appreciation for the paths that we’ve trodden upon. They truly should never be feared but instead rendered as a ‘time out’ to re-evaluate and celebrate how far we’ve come in life. Keeping Reiki in my back pocket eases my concerns about ageing, reinforces that I have an ally that’ll continue to look out for my well-being no matter what age I am. So here I am, age 40 plus a day and feeling as youthful as I was decades ago. A few more fine lines and gray hairs but more importantly a deep seeded satisfaction in knowing that I am still a healthy, energetic being with more vital energy and wisdom than I ever had in my twenties, all thanks to Reiki.
Ah fabulous forty. As far as I can see I have vitality on my door step, new found freedoms on the brink of materializing before my eyes and a whole new ensemble of firsts ready to present themselves.
Reiki Regards,
JC