Sunset end 2019, Hampstead Heath

Reflecting on 2019, I realised how turbulent the year was, with many highs and lows, for so many of us. For me, 2019 started with deep discomfort while serving on the Board for The Reiki Association (TRA). With time, the discomfort eased and lots of healing, learning and growth accrued. I feel very grateful for the community that TRA provides and for being able to serve the community. The light is definitely stronger in the bigger community that TRA provides. Please do consider joining TRA community if you have not already done so.

In May 2019, I attended my first annual Reiki Alliance Conference. It was profoundly healing to be with nearly 120 Reiki Masters from many different countries. It was so inspiring that I am going to Uruguay this year, at the end of April, to attend the Conference. I have not been to the South of Equator, so really looking forward to this trip. Any travel advice/recommendations would be deeply appreciated.

Just before the Alliance Conference, I went on a tour of some sacred sites in the UK with Reiki Masters visiting from abroad. It was a powerful experience, very grounding. It helped deepen my roots in this country, that has been my home for over 27 years.

2019 also witnessed the passing of Phyllis Lei Furumoto and Wanja Twan. This is a deep loss for the community yet their teachings and wisdom seem to be very present. They seem to continue to teach and guide us from where they are now. I remember Phyllis’ advice – ‘Just think of me and place your Reiki hands on yourself’. Wanja’s writings, her books, especially the latest one ‘A Slight Twinkling in the Atomic Structure’ continue to bring some deeply meaningful insight for me each day as I open it randomly every morning. Losing these two teachers is a poignant reminder to celebrate the teachers who are still with us. I feel very grateful to all my teachers, for valuing Reiki enough in their own lives to want to share it with others. TRA published a special issue of TOUCH magazine dedicated to stories of Phyllis last year. The latest issue of TOUCH is dedicated to stories of Wanja. These issues are still available and would be wonderful keepsakes as each time we read the stories, new messages can come through.

The main highlight of the year for me was, being able to breathe comfortably for the last 5 months. As many of you know, I suffer from asthma. It has been my biggest challenge and also the source of deepest gifts. Many insights come through the focus I have been forced to keep on the breath. Around June, the concept of welcoming the present moment emerged. Gradually it became like a mantra – ‘Breathing in, I welcome the present moment; Breathing out, I accept it with gratitude’. These words have supported me, not just with the breath, also in moments of overwhelm or deep discomfort.

Later in the year I discovered the poem Guesthouse by the mystic poet Rumi. This poem helped me appreciate even more deeply, the value of welcoming the present moment and staying open, to allow what needs to flow through my being in that moment.

2020 is starting with an eclipse on the 10th January and a meeting of two rather heavy weight planets – Saturn and Pluto, two days later. There may be some emotions, some discomfort arising at this time. My wish for 2020 is to be able to welcome what life is bringing our way and breathe consciously through it; deepen connection with nature and deepen trust in the body – both being powerful sources of transformation. I wish for the peace and stillness I can feel in a Reiki treatment to be present at other times too.

At the beginning of 2020, I am feeling ever more grateful for the daily practice of Reiki. I still can’t believe how blessed we are to have Reiki in our life, this incredibly simple yet profound practice of Divine Sacred healing in our hands. I feel deep gratitude to you. It is an honour and a blessing to be able to serve you.