This past Sunday, I graduated from the Potomac Massage Training Institute. I'm so grateful excited to incorporate massage therapy into my professional offerings, not only for those who are sick and/or at the end of life, but also for those who are needing financially, physically accessible and justice-oriented massage at any stage in life. I welcome everyone! Please spread the word!
I, along with a few other graduates, spoke some remarks at our graduation ceremony. Below is a copy of what I shared, and some pictures from the day! Thanks for reading.
It's an amazing privilege, and ridiculously cool, to have a job in which our main goal is holding space for people. I've learned that each session is, at its core, an excuse to love another human being. To hold them in the light of care, and kindness, respect, justice, empowerment, and non-judgment. Touch is one of the languages we get to use to provide this. I'm so grateful to our teachers--that's both our actual instructors and anyone, like many of you, who have generously shown up on our tables and those who have declined to do so. As teachers, you've patiently guided us through the vocabulary of touch and shown us the resources within ourselves to keep learning.
Whatever musculoskeletal physicality is involved, even if we're deep in some torn myofibrils and collagen and scar tissue and our client doesn't care about the energy flow between us or sweet, gentle still touch; we get to listen deeply and honor them as a human being. If we're lucky, we may feel our chest or our belly soften humbly with care for another person.
We get to--and have to--honor ourselves not only as practitioners working hard in a rich and challenging field, but simply as human beings who are doing our best and sometimes failing and trying again. When, instead of softening into love for our clients, our bodies tense up and feel pain, or anger, or judgment, or exhaustion, we get to love ourselves even harder and hold ourselves in the same kindness, respect, and non-judgment that we foster for those on the table. We get to do it when we're doing endless amounts of laundry and on the phone with insurance companies for hours. We get to hold space for ourselves, and for others. It's a tall order, and now we get to do it as our work in this world. Thank you.
Feeling loved and supported by my friends/chosen family!
Guess I was feeling a little passionate...... :)