A Lesson from a Flood

Many people have been affected recently by flooding.  We were fortunate that the only water that came into our house was down the chimney.  The last time this happened in July 2007 it inspired me to write an article

comparing dealing with the deluge to a healing process…

"The rain came down our chimney in such quantities that it created a minor flood. It ran behind the range, behind the sideboard and out into the next room. While the floor of the first room is tiled, so not difficult to clean up, the room it ran into has a wooden floor, so the black sooty water would stain it.  Aarghh!

As I was cleaning it up, I thought about how it was like the healing process people often go through with Reiki. The sooty water about to stain the floorboards was like when a crisis point is reached in our health so something must be done. I began my cleaning there – making sure the water didn’t stain any further, limiting the damage. Similarly, with Reiki, I help people deal with the immediate crisis that has pushed them into seeking help.

Once that was done, I stood back for a moment and saw that the sooty water was seeping back, so I needed to clear up the puddle

behind the sideboard to prevent it running into the next room again. Similarly in a healing process, once the immediate symptoms are

dealt with, you often find some underlying cause that will make the problem recur if not treated. For example in the case of a painful

knee: having relieved the pain somewhat you might find that the immediate cause of that pain is tension in the hip.

Cleaning up behind the sideboard involved a bit more effort: I had to move the furniture. Similarly in a healing process there can be a point when something needs to shift for healing to continue. It could be a physical shift or it could be mental or emotional – such as allowing yourself to rest more.

Taking time to breathe and review the situation again, I realised that the water was just going to keep on coming unless I did something about the large quantity behind the range. Similarly, in a healing process there can come a time when you realise that the real

cause is something deeper and will keep on causing the same problem to recur unless you deal with it. For example, a horse I treated had been badly treated in his past. His reactions to present events were therefore coloured by this experience, making him difficult and unhappy. Over a period of time Reiki healing helped him to release the painful memories and so react to the present in proportion to what was really happening.

It took a lot of effort to mop up the pools of water behind the range: getting to it was awkward, uncomfortable, difficult, and time consuming. A healing process can be just the same! Eventually the flood was under control – but it was still raining – just as life continues to happen and we have to go on dealing with it!  I arranged a bucket under the drips, which is like having the occasional ongoing treatment to help cope with life and continue the healing process.

Finally I had finished and there was a great feeling of satisfaction. The same good feelings can be experienced when you have made progress in your healing!"