Reiki in my new role.

I would like to start this post by saying that I don't believe in just giving someone Reiki without them knowing or requesting it. It is one of those things where some people agree with it and some people disagree with it and thats fine, each to their own.

However.

In my new role as a care assistant, I am faced every day with people suffering from Dementia. In my two weeks there my heart has broken for all those suffering as a result of the Dementia. The individual, their family and friends, the carers and nurses. Everyone is affected in some degree. It is a harrowing to see, to watch, to not be able to do anything. And one night, it got too much for me.

I was trying to help M* to bed. Without fail, every night at 7pm, M will start to cry. What will start as a slight worry for M will grow and grow until her body is wracked with sobs. She feels compelled to do something but is unsure what, which feeds the frustration. M will pace around the ground floor until one of us lead her to her room to try, unsuccessfully, to calm her.

This got too much for me, and I was at such a loss as to what to do that, knelt before her, I closed my eyes, placed my hands on her knees and began to channel Reiki. After a few minutes she had calmed down enough to speak to me. I consoled her worries and got her ready for bed. Since then I have used Reiki more in my job. I figure it is down to our Spirit Guides to accept it or not. Reiki will never hurt anyone so I can't be doing any harm by trying.

Sometimes, a soothing, calm demeanor just isn't enough.

(*obviously I'm not going to use her name)

Feng Shui and my living room

Well, it is time to think about decorating my living room.

On the Feng Shui Bagua, my living room covers two areas, Fame and Health. According to the book I use, Move your stuff, change your life Karen Rauch Carter, The Fame Gua's power tools are:

• Fire
• Lights
• The colour red
• Triangular objects
• Wood
• Green
• Television
• Rectangular or Columnar objects
• Stained glass
• Animals
• Plants
• Celebrity pictures or memorabilia
• Personal wish list
• Mountains 

So basically I am at the decorating stage, I don't know whether to paper or paint and I'm a bit funny about having the colour red in my house. I don't know why. I'm just not keen.

The Health Gua power tools are as follows:

• Earth
• Fruit
• Funny stuff
• Yellow, Gold and Earth Tones
• Squares
• Flat things
• Fire
• Stars and Sun
• Red
• Triangular objects

I thought about red and gold. My mum's living room in a previous home was red and gold and she had endless fortunes at the time. But there is something about the living room that makes me think it wont suit gold.

So really, I have no clue.

My new job is going fantastically. I have started my NVQ in health care so I should probably work on my career Gua and skills and knowledge Gua which happens to be my hall and pantry.... hmmm.

British Tap Water

British tap water is now number one on my hit list.

It all started when my Reiki Master mentioned how Fluoride, a common additive in Britain's tap water, calcifies (CALCIFIES!!) the pituitary gland in the human brain.

Now I'm the type of person who when given new information, has to go and research it because it usually sounds ludicrous, this was no exception.

So I researched and researched and researched and found that, yes, Fluoride is known to calcify the pituitary gland.... what?

The irony of this story is that my friend in college would struggle to clean her teeth in the morning with fluoride toothpaste because it would give her a raging headache, which I dismissed as daft-ness (sorry Spadgecake). Maybe she was just more prone to the effects of fluoride. I hope not. I don't want her brain to be calcified!

At Buxton there was a stand about all of this. And a talk. And I am so mad at myself for not getting around to watching a talk or even just chatting to them at their stall.

The reason I am suddenly on a high horse about British tap water is because I cannot even SHOWER now without coming out in an itchy rash. It drives me mad with scratching. My arms and legs in particular.

The last time I ever itched like this was when I was having swimming lessons in my childhood... turns out I'm allergic to chlorine.

Also turns out that in certain places in the UK the powers that be pump EXTRA chlorine (that's a bleach by the way) into our water if they deem it too infected with other stuff.

What the hell are they putting into us? What happened to clean pure water that ran through our mountains?

By the way. The water people (really should find out who it is responsible for this) insist that even drinking water companies have to have a particular amount of fluoride in their pure water for the sake of our teeth.

Fluoride does absolutely nothing, NOTHING, for our teeth.

I'm still itching.

Absence.

I've not had chance to update my blog due to work commitments. I have been offered a full time job to replace my part time retail job, so this last week has been busy as I've been preparing to leave a job I genuinely love and start afresh on a completely different career path.

I have been very drawn to Feng Shui recently. My mother has returned my book to me so I can read up a bit more on that to keep my mind fresh with it. I've also been meandering my way through "Reiki for Life" by Penelope Quest, a fascinating book but so full of information I have to take my time absorbing it.

In other news, the dying money plant that was left abandoned in the house by it's previous occupants has been brought back to full, vibrant life, by yours truly. So much so I had to prune it this morning because it's branches were too heavy for it. I, of course, have not taken pictures and I am kicking myself for it now. It was on it's last legs and if I didn't have such a dire financial situation I would have got over my qualms of throwing it away (symbolically throwing my money away?) and chucked it out with yesterdays over-cooked dinner and left over soggy salads. Alas. I repotted the poor little begger (pun!) and it is bigger and better than ever (hello new full time job!). I have saved the prunings to replant.

Maybe this is the path my life should take. Horticultural?

The slow mosey 'round.

I am the type of person that drives vendors mad. It isn't something I try to do on purpose, but I like to mosey and look at every-single-little-thing(!) before I commit to perusing their wares.

Now, the trick to this is that some Vendors are there solely to make money. Plain and simple. I'm sure there were some good intentions there when they started up their business but sometimes desperation takes over and before you know it you are being harangued and accosted by people trying to sell their "miracle make-up" and (much to my chagrin) "healing hair silks".

Don't get me wrong. I used to go to these festivals and be amazed at the wondrous spirituality of the whole shebang, but this year I was sorely disappointed with some of the stalls, but I won't dwell.

My travels around all of the stalls also gives me an idea of what I want to buy and where I can buy it from. The actual sale person is of vital importance at this point. If I don't like the sales person for any reason what-so-ever I will not buy. Simple. Apart from one of them but that's a long story.

I must admit though. There is a book shop that is at every single one of these festivals I go to. It's amazing and has books on everything spiritual and controversial. They must make a fortune, God only knows I always spend a good wad of dosh there every year. But these are books you would even struggle to find on Amazon. I will find a link and put it on my links page.

All in all there were approximately 80-90 stalls, and that's a lot of information to take in. On top of this there were performers and performances on the stage that were amazing! The energy created by some of these (particularly Jason Chan of Radiant Warrior and Infinite Tai Chi) would heat up the room like you wouldn't believe.

The thing is you never see everything on that initial walk about. I didn't see some of the stalls in all the hours I was there on Saturday, making me so grateful that I could be there for both days. And it's nice when the vendors recognise you and make conversation with you on that second day.