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Archive for the ‘General’ Category

Last missive from massage school

Posted in General on April 18, 2018| Leave a Comment »

It has been a crazy past few days…
Yesterday morning we studied I Ching (I learned a lot of course, in spite of having been studying this divinatory tool for more than 10 years), Feng Shui, and further Hydrotherapy techniques. That was an awesome morning.
Then in the afternoon, I tried to check out on Integrated Massage. The director discovered that I was not remembering Shiatsu that well, so it was included in my treatment. Meaning I made a couple of little mistakes and did not pass. I took that poorly and had a rough few hours.
Fortunately today I did pass! Today was Marathon day – where we treated four clients in 5 and a half hours. Good practice in case we work in a spa one day.
It was so nice to be let off the leash as it were (weird metaphor there). We have previously been forced to use the same Kata or pattern for doing each modality and today we were given freedom to mix it up. It was awesome!
One of my clients received 4 modalities from me as that was her request. Passive stretching, acupressure, Craniosacral and Swedish Massage. She said her neck had been hurting her for months – I did about 15 minutes of Cranio on her and she said her neck felt great! Yay! We know a lot of modalities and I am so grateful to be able to do this beautiful bodywork.
It has only sunk in now that we are leaving tomorrow… over the weekend I kept saying to myself, “we have 3 days left of school…” and only now is the sadness / excitement / giddiness / curiosity / sense-of-adventure starting to well up. I am going to miss these incredible teachers, our wonderful group and these epics mountains – and not to mention Crestone’s powerful spiritual / transformational energy (it is legit).
And I need some people to practice on when I get back 🙂  I figure 5 of each modality for donation, then another 5 for a suggested donation and then I will be ready to go! It will probably take 2 – 3 months to get my license and pass the national exam. So it will work out well!
I’m very excited for what the next few months hold!
Thank you all for your awesome support!

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Integrated Massage, manifesting, mystical experiences here in Crestone CO

Posted in General on April 12, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Less than a week before Massage School is over. It is sad and exciting at the same time. My heart is doing well with being present with what is. I will miss being a part of this great group. I will miss the spiritual potency that is Crestone Colorado. I will not miss how every little character flaw I have is reflected back at me directly or confronted quickly (another bonus of being in Crestone). I will definitely miss all the amazing modalities we are learning and practicing daily. And I will miss Dan and Sue – the teachers here. What a majestic, magical, mystical, sublime program they have created here!

Manifesting what I want… this is the second time I have manifested what I need / want. Tonight as a gift from a practicum client I received a beautiful essential oil diffusor. I have seen one used in several of our classes and I thought I would like to have one for my apartment or office… And sure enough several weeks later, here it is!

Speaking of practicum clients, tonight I felt sad about leaving the school – and leaving all these awesome people who have allowed us to practice on them for the past ten weeks! Of course I may have been feeling my client’s sadness as well.

We are now cleaning for about an hour a day – today we dusted the leaves of all the plants (they have about two dozen, some of which are massive). I am mostly packed up except for clothes and food. This weekend I will load my car with non-food items as the bears are starting to wake up.

I have been giving a few extra bodywork sessions outside of school – usually in exchange for barter. I received a number of potent essential oils recently – and elk steaks! And I have more requests for sessions than I can accommodate. I both wish I could stay here longer and I am happy to be getting home and getting my business up and running again! Very bittersweet.

Last night – integrated massage I did amazing shiatsu plus acupressure and reflexology. Tonight I did awesome Swedish massage with passive stretching done in the midst of the Swedish. I loved it and so did my client. With all we have learned, I could literally do a thousand treatments and not have two be alike… kind of overwhelming and incredible at the same time!

I am praying I get the chance to check out on integrated tomorrow. If I don’t check out tomorrow, I might have to wait until Tuesday – the last day to possibly do it. He has only held one person back – saying they had to come back to give him another treatment in a few weeks. But I do not want to be the second!

We took a huge physiology test tonight – took two hours, 105 questions. It was crazy challenging. We will grade them Friday.

Now only the Anatomy Test left on Monday. Then the Marathon on Tuesday – seeing 4 clients over the course of 5 hours. Good preparation for a busy practice or spa type setting.

Then we are out of here! Wow!

Thanks for reading!

~km

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Counting down towards Massage School wrap up

Posted in General on April 10, 2018| Leave a Comment »

We are getting down to the last few days of class / training / practice here at Massage School. It is exciting, we have learned SO much and now I need to practice it all to keep it fresh and potent. By the way, I have a journaling assignment for school (hence there have been a number of massage school posts on here).
So we are now into Integrated Massage. Tonight was great – there was some flexibility in what we offered our practicum person and there will be through to the end of the program. Therefore I did Swedish Massage, Reflexology and Acupressure – oh and hydrotherapy and aromatherapy in 85 minutes. I loved it and so did my client – she said, “You have amazing Reiki flowing through your hands.” Could be?! (acupressure is one modality that is also a Chi Kung practice, so I actually get more energy from practicing it – hence she mistook the Chi cultivation for Reiki).
I passed my Reflexology check out today so that is nice to have behind me. Now all we have left is one modality check out, a Physiology test and an Anatomy test. Then we graduate next Wednesday!
Oh and this morning we got a bonus elementary martial arts / Chi Kung / I Ching instruction. Nothing like having an instant barometer for determining whether we are in our center or not.
I am excited and still doing my best to not leave energetically before the program is over. And with that said, let me know if you are interested in receiving a treatment of one of these incredible modalities for a donation (once I get my license I will charge $100 / hour – so take advantage of this while it lasts!). I will start seeing clients in Virginia May 1st.
Thank you for reading!
~km

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Hi dear Readers, Help me buy tea so I can continue blogging. So if you enjoy what you are reading, please make a little donation. Thank you very much!

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Beginning final lap of massage school

Posted in General on April 4, 2018| 1 Comment »

We only have 11 days of class / treatments / tests remaining. And either we are getting used to the rigorous schedule or the pressure is finally lightening up. For about a month there, things were really intense. The director warned us about that.
It’s gotten cold again – tonight it is supposed to get down to 27 F. Recently its been in the 50’s and 60’s during the day – so the goddesses are sun bathing when they can.
I am teaching Kundalini Yoga tomorrow and after practicing with my teaching partner, apparently I chose a really challenging Kriya (set of exercises). Oh well – it was fun while I was doing it! (We have to be able to do it in order to teach it)
We are learning Reflexology now and starting to do it on our practicum clients. I am realizing that if I want to offer that professionally, I might want to take extra training. We are learning a pattern that we can do in 45 minutes or so – then with stretching and hand manipulations we can make it an hour.
Speaking of stretching, I am in love with this modality. When I receive it, I am in such an altered state (in a good way). I have now realized that the tension and resistance in my joints is primarily emotional and by breathing into it, I can release some of it in seconds! Stretching a physical release and psycho-spiritual-emotional release as well… When I get back, I will be doing some sessions for a donation – I want to practice on you 🙂
This seems to be graduate week – we have had six grads come and talk to us in the past two days. They come and receive treatments during practicum and visit with the teachers and local grads as well. They pretty much say the same thing – we are so blessed and lucky. Apparently when a spa learns that you graduated from this school, it is no longer an interview, but just a you-are-already-in-the-door-let’s-just-make-sure-you-know-what-you-are-doing. Plus they went over the process for obtaining licensure – very helpful!
There is still some crazy intensity remaining. Friday, we are doing a 2-hour yoga set which requires oiling our bodies (privately) and taking a cold shower ahead of it. Then a week later, we are doing a 2.5 hour meditation with the intention of making ourselves better healing facilitators. All on top of studying for a big physiology test late next week.
Thank you for reading and may your Spring be joyous!
~kirby

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Massage school (mystery school) is winding down

Posted in General on March 31, 2018| Leave a Comment »

We only have 2 and a half weeks left of school! It is wild how fast these weeks are zipping by. Early on in the program it felt like each week was a month long.
The past few days we have been learning passive stretching – which means the client is being stretched by the practitioner – and it is incredible! When I was on the table, I realized some of the muscles in my body have never really been stretched. I am really hoping to find a good practitioner of this when I get home!
This week we are learning and performing reflexology – mostly foot reflexology. It is amazing how dynamic this program is. We stress how the human body is a holographic form – meaning each cell contains a blue print for the entire body. And there are many parts of the body that reflect the whole body. This is truly a holistic approach (which separates practitioners who graduate from here from other massage schools – this is a mystery school in addition to being an entry level program). We have briefly looked at how the ears, the colon, the irises, the teeth, the hands reflect the entire body – like the feet!
This week we are teaching a Kundalini Yoga class in pairs. I am paired up with a neat 20-year-old who has been on her own for 5 years and who teaches yoga back home. So that is nice. This is a good time to be working with the liver – so that’s what we are leading – the Liver Lover Kriya.
We just had two weeks straight – we did class and had fun through last weekend with herbology, crystals and working with plants in the context of massage. That was great!
I am realizing that I am learning so many techniques though that something (that I want to keep) will have to go. Therefore when I get back, I will practice most techniques but I am expecting one or two modalities to fall away naturally.
The thought of leaving is very bittersweet. This is a fantastic group I have been a part of. The teachers are awesome. And I am even starting to enjoy most aspects of Kundalini Yoga! I have truly settled into this pace and place.
It is challenging to get myself up for all the assignments which continue to come our way. I think the two weeks straight was taxing. Thankfully I can get some rest this weekend so I will have the motivation to finish strong!
I am very excited about heading home and getting a thriving bodywork practice going. It is a challenge though to keep my mind focused on the task at hand. I find myself wandering into the future about all the various things I want to offer. It is good though – I am writing the better ideas down for later use!
Thank you for reading and I wish you well!
~km

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Chi Kung Tai Chi oral exams; full week at magic mystery massage school

Posted in General, tagged , , , , , , on March 18, 2018| Leave a Comment »

This past week has been very full. We are learning Swedish Massage and we will start offering that to our clients on Monday from memory – there are only about 100 techniques to pack into an hour… oh and I sat in on oral exams all week meaning no breakfast or lunch break!
I am loving what I am studying though. For instance, here is some basic TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) advice which I wish I had learned in High School:
Yuan Chi – AKA pre-natal chi is non-renewable. When we run out of that, we are transitioning on to our next incarnation. The good news is that Zehn Chi – post-natal chi is renewable – we cultivate fresh Zehn Chi in many ways including eating healthy food (and the manner in which we consume it is important – saying blessings over our food increases the Chi), having a meditation practice, chanting sacred mantras, doing yoga or Chi Kung etc all can increase Zehn Chi. The kidneys determine how much Zehn Chi (renewable) and how much Yuan Chi (non-renewable) to use on any given activity. This is why we want to take care of our kidneys – in TCM kidneys are the most important organ. There is a ton more to say, but this is basically it in a nutshell – get good rest, practice self care, eat good food, breath clean air, get a reasonable amount of exercise (and you will probably live longer and happier) 🙂
I just have one more question to complete my oral exams Monday. That will be nice to get that behind me.
Oh – as a result of doing Swedish from memory, I am having to give 4 massages and receive 3 this weekend… (I know I shouldn’t complain).
We still have to learn Reflexology, although we have already started studying it and then that is all the modalities we are learning! Then it will be on to integrated massage where we combine elements with clients.
The last full day of massage school (in April), we are giving 4 treatments in 6 hours to mimic what it will be like working in a spa. It is called the Marathon Day – aptly named.
This coming weekend we have 3 full days of herbology – we will learn how to infuse herbs into our massage oil, how to make and use herb packs for pre- or post-massage bliss and more! I’m definitely looking forward to that! It does mean though that we won’t have a day off for two weeks.
We only have 26 days left of actual class but who’s counting? Pretty amazing how far we have come.
Oh yeah – I did 11 chair massages on Tuesday in a bank in just 3.5 hours! That was crazy – and my massage partner and I (she did 9 massages) did not get the message to put out a donation jar, so I only made one tip. Oh well. It was great experience – although I never want to treat so many people in such a short time again.
I have discovered a steep hill I can hike to and climb up in under an hour. I felt drawn to this hill for several weeks before finally summiting it 🙂  At the top there are hundreds of strands of prayer flags, a fire ring and a rock cairn of white-painted rocks which is a makeshift Buddhist shrine. Apparently just a hundred yards down the other side of this hill there are about a dozen retreat cabins with meditators in them year-round. No wonder I feel drawn to that location! (Longchen Jigme Samten Ling retreat center)
It is a nice hike too with an awesome view from the top – seeing for over 60 miles up and down and across the San Luis Valley – many snow capped peaks!
It is hard to believe that I will start packing my things in just 3 weeks! Then I am planning to visit Denver and Boulder for a few days – seeing a friend and his family and visiting a family friend from Hawaii days (haven’t seen her in over 20 years).
Finally, in Chi Kung we are learning a technique which myth has it, makes warriors invincible (I’m not going to do anything extreme, don’t worry). We are only practicing a part of the entire form that existed in the past. Actually it turns out I was doing this Chi Kung from videos for the past year, but now I know it a lot better and the breathing to go with it (it involves aggravatingly slow breathing, difficult to do at first)! Baduanjin Qigong
We are also learning a short form of Tai Chi which involves beautiful, graceful movements and foot work – it is slow motion martial arts. I LOVE IT! 24 Form Tai Chi Yang Style
Oh and I swear this is the last thing… we are about to start learning Water Chi Kung – having finished Tree Chi Kung weeks ago and just wrapped up Solar Chi Kung this past week. I’m excited about that as well! (If you only knew all that we were learning… this school really is an Alchemical learning environment)
Thanks for reading!
May all sentient beings known and unknown have all their needs met!
~km

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Eve of 39th birthday, some progress, lots more growth ahead

Posted in General on March 15, 2018| Leave a Comment »

As I sit here, my Solar Return is occurring, I’m turning 39 years old – I’m almost 40!! Good lord I’m getting on up there!

If you have not been keeping up with my posts or with Facebook, I have been in an intensive massage school program for the past 7 weeks now. It is magical, full, rich, and at times overwhelming (like right about now). Also, I have been brought face to face with my inadequacies, in a good yet uncomfortable way. Little messes I have made have come home to me days or a couple weeks later and I have to clean them up. I have heard that is the nature of Crestone Colorado – it is a very spiritual place, lots of potential growth to happen. And we either hide from it using substances or medication or food, or we set the intention to face it head on (apparently I have done this). No matter how uncomfortable it is at times.

Massage School will lead to good things though! I am very excited to share all that I am learning with clients and friends and even family! The acupressure is pretty easy to do and it is practically a spiritual practice to conduct it – I literally sit in my Chi Kung foundations the entire time I am giving an acupressure session. I am excited to open and sustain a professional bodywork practice – to have the credentials to put myself out there, to continue growing and learning one or two modalities on top of what I already know. And now that I have a significant Chi Kung and Tai Chi foundation under my belt, and I aspire to continue practicing at least 5 – 6 days a week, I feel like I will have the energy and motivation to maintain a thriving bodywork practice for months and years at a time. Of course I will take breaks for vacation or trainings!

Teaching – I foolishly or boldly felt that I had what it takes to teach bodywork starting this past year. Now I’m not so sure. Some days I have solid boundaries, other days they are a little flaky. I canceled a teaching gig I had down in the Tidewater area – it feels like I need to focus on one or two things at a time. Time to stop spreading myself so thin and actually take on pragmatic and realistic projects – and let everything else go! And say no to everything else 🙂

So I’m not sure if / when I will teach bodywork. The I Ching (one of my divination tools) says that I need to get on out there and share what I have learned. I do feel like I need to be teaching Spiritual Astrology. It was actually the I Ching that confirmed it was a good idea to cancel the upcoming workshop in Portsmouth. So I don’t know what is going on in this regard. I do know that I’m not going to share any Chi Kung until I have done a consistent, persistent practice for at least a year.

So I think this is what my next year looks like (my 40th year): focusing a lot of time and energy into getting my bodywork practice back up and thriving, taking an awesome workshop on Embryology in July and doing a restorative and potent 10-day retreat in December. I have big plans for 2019, but I will keep those to myself until they actually become tangible.

Spiritual Practice – when I actually practice on a regular basis, I feel like I am extremely blessed and I might actually have a blessing to share with others. But that has not been the case much – I am really good at practicing for a few days here, a few spurts there, but maintaining a consistent morning practice for more than a month – very rare indeed! I am the definition of ADHD Dharma practitioner – in the course of a given month, I will have done about ten practices, some multiple times (I admit rather sheepishly). I tend to practice a lot – considering I am not very good at the whole relationship thing.

Here in Crestone, at Massage School, where I have very limited time, I am loving the amount of practice I am doing. Some mornings I will wake up an hour before my alarm and do mantras for a while. Some days I even feel up to doing prostrations, although there is limited private space – so I do half prostrations in my little bedroom! =^D

On the weekends here, I visit a beautiful Dharma center and then later I trek up to a large stupa that is up a 4-wheel-drive road that I dare not bring my little car up again! It is fun to hike it though – I meet neat people and have incredible views of the San Luis Valley.

Speaking of relationships… I feel that I am finally ready to put in the work to have a right livelihood where I can take a few days off to go enjoy myself (with a healthy romantic partner). Up to this point, I was really good at talking the talk, but not so good at walking the walk. But I really want to put in 40 hours a week building client-base, marketing myself, giving treatments and getting compensated for good work. I do have high standards in a potential partner, so I’m not rushing into anything. But I would like to meet her soon… we shall see – maybe it will be best to focus the next few months on getting established.

I’m excited about what’s ahead. I have big dreams and I am doing better about being realistic. Some days I feel like I don’t have a clue as to what my destiny is (if there is such a thing – that could be summed up in one or two sentences?!) and other days I feel like I am walking my path with clarity and radiance.

May we all discover balance and equanimity and stable contentment!

Thanks for reading my rambling words,

~km

Donation to Kirby’s blogging efforts

Hi dear Readers, Help me buy tea so I can continue blogging. So if you enjoy what you are reading, please make a little donation. Thank you very much!

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