Yes, I am a Reiki master

I awoke with the Usui System of Reiki Healing Precepts in my head:

Just for today, do not worry.

Just for today, do not anger.

Honor your parents, teachers and elders.

Earn your living honestly.

Show gratitude to every living thing.

It dawned on me that the first two lines were keys to achieving “no more back pain” in the way suggested by John E. Sarno, M.D., in his book Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection. In my last post, that appears under this one, I told the story of a health issue and how I would be seeing how well I could “live with it” before seeing a spine surgeon.

This Mother’s Day weekend I received two noteworthy healing gifts: a Reiki workshop by my friend and colleague Lori, and Dr. Sarno’s book from DH that arrive in the mail (before, I had read only excerpts of the book).

On Saturday, Lori, one of my Reiki teachers, and I gave the Level 2 and Master level training at the studio, and at the end of the day Lori had attuned and certified two more independent Reiki masters, 11th generation from Dr. Mikao Usui through Mrs. Hawayo Takata.

In preparing for the session Lori said I should participate in the “Journey into Mastery” segment of the training, along with the new students. In other words, to put it bluntly, she thought I could use a refresher. Having experienced the 90-minute meditation when I was initially attuned to Reiki, I knew it was powerful for clearing out old, repressed emotions.

Repressed emotions are what Dr. Sarno maintains is the cause of TMS, or Tension Myositis Syndrome, a constellation of physical pain that is frequently misdiagnosed as caused by an injury to the structure of the body. Exactly what kinds of repressed emotions?

Sarno identifies anxiety (worry) and anger as number one and number two on the list.

The way to heal my TMS is remarkably simple, now that I have accepted the diagnosis. Sarno writes that treatment involves education, “the acquisition of knowledge, of insight into the nature of the disorder.” In his program he gives two lectures. In my case I am reading, reading, reading. The second part is to acquire “the ability to act on the knowledge and thereby change the brain’s behavior.”

So, here’s what I learned I have to do. When I feel physical pain, I ask myself, “Why this pain now? What is going through my mind? What am I thinking?” I regard the pain as my body’s way of telling me that there is an unpleasant, uncomfortable or unkind emotion I’m having at that moment. And I say to the pain, “Go away, stop distracting me from this emotion. I know what’s bothering me. I understand. I don’t need the pain anymore.” Yes, it can be that simple.

As long as I recognize there are psychological reasons for pain and become aware of the emotion, I am on my way to recovery. Though I don’t believe it’s necessary to go back and relive the emotional pain, I think touching that “nerve” and the few good cries I’ve had are helpful. Finding the courage to “go there” . . . yeah.

I am thankful to have had four weeks to learn about TMS while waiting to see the spine surgeon. I’m resuming my normal activities, and the sciatic pain is less and less. I meet the spine doctor for the first time in just a few hours. I’m looking forward to a good visit.

Copyright 2012 Rebekah Luke

Time for a new way of life

My latest wellness kick—taking to heart the advice of Dr. David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD, in his book Anticancer A New Way of Life. His message has convinced me to change my ways. Seriously.

Our friend Lois will be so delighted I read the book.

Two Sundays ago, Lois invited her friends to a barbecue at her son’s house in Niu Valley, where she was staying, to thank everybody for their prayers and support in her recovery from breast cancer and conventional treatment. Hallelujah! She looked radiant!

To everyone she greeted at the front door, she passed out a calling card with the image of the Anticancer book cover.

“I moved in with my son, and he cooked for me,” she said, attributing her new health to “the book.”

The day before, news came from another friend Sue in Tulare that she was clear of her throat cancer. So grateful. Thank You! Great news from two friends in two days!

So I found the book at Borders and finished reading it today. I’ve heard the brave doctor’s message in bits and pieces for a long time from various sources. We all have. Diet, nutrition, exercise, less stress, balance, etc.

A neuroscientist who battled his own brain cancer, Servan-Schreiber explains how cancer cells behave, what turns them into disease, and how to keep them from growing.

His work ties all the information together, describing the “terrain” our bodies, minds, spirits and emotions need to be well and thrive—before, during, and after illness—citing study after study by other scientists.

He presents the findings in such a way, this time I’m paying attention. For starters, NO SUGAR. (Did you hear that? )

It’s a do-able formula, sounds simple, but can I execute it? I’ll try harder to be good to me, myself, and I. A challenge, to be sure, but it’s time for a new way of life.

“All of us have cancer cells in our bodies” are the first words on the book jacket. “But not all of us will develop cancer.” It’s good to be more aware.

The new edition of Anticancer was written in 2009 (ISBN 978-0-670-02164-2).

There is a short-cut summary of action steps in a subsequent article, “20 new anticancer rules,” at this link, but it leaves out the background (the why) that I found interesting and comprehensive.

Readers also can go to http://www.anticancerbook.com for more information.

Thanks for stopping by my studio.

P.S. Just two more days to see my paintings in a downtown Honolulu exhibit. Here’s the info: http://rebekahstudio.wordpress.com/paintings.

Copyright 2011 Rebekah Luke

My new favorite book about healing

Hi Everyone,

Oprah did the interview in 2008, but only today did I finish reading the book from cover to cover.

My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor is my new favorite that I want to share. It is a wonderful gift for healing and answers many questions I had about universal life force energy. The author suggests how we can radiate peace and healing onto the world.

Dr. Jill is a brain scientist, a neuroanatomist, who observed herself having a stroke in 1996. Because of her academic study of the brain, she knew what was happening to her. And she made a conscious decision to recover so that she could educate others. In 2006, ten years since her left hemisphere was wounded, she finished her book, providing a valuable resource for families and caregivers.

I recall her appearance on Oprah’s show, and later caught more of her talk on  Oprah’s website. (Just click on the link.) I recall thinking, “Gosh, I wish this information was available to me when my dad had his strokes.” The medical community was not forthcoming in our hour of need. Where was the compassion? Or perhaps I didn’t know what questions to ask nor where to go for help.

And perhaps only now would the rest of what Dr. Jill reveals make sense to me. In other words, any earlier I would not be ready for it.

Two weeks ago the WCC Tai Chi Club hosted a workshop series, and my tai chi sister Karen had a big part in planning and coordinating the hospitality for participants who included about 20 out-of-towners.  Although her husband just had a stroke a few days before, Karen was determined to show up and follow through with the plans. I decided to present her with My Stroke of Insight. “She can re-gift it,” I thought, if she had already read it. Karen is a librarian, so I was hoping she would appreciate it in any case.

The bookstore at the mall had two copies in stock, and I bought both: one for Karen and one for me. I thank Karen for her situation that reminded me to seek the book!

The first adjective that comes to mind as you follow Dr. Jill’s experience is “fascinating.” In itself, the detailed account is useful in the event that we (I) or another loved one should find ourselves in a similar situation in the future. Further, Dr. Jill explains how the left brain (hemisphere) works and how the right brain works. With only the right half of her brain working, she experienced what it feels like to be One with the universe.

She encourages us to acknowledge the workings of the left brain and to practice using the right brain that will cause us to live in the present, rather than the past or future. She explains how every emotion is paired with a physiological response (physical body posture) that takes only 90 seconds to run its course, after which we can decide to come back to the present. Which leads to healing, peace, and . . . well, you’ll just have to read the book! Dr. Jill tells it best. Thank you, Dr. Jill!

Oh, and I just read on Dr. Jill’s website that there’s a movie planned!

Related information: On the Thank You page of Rebekah’s Studio I list links to Jill Bolte Taylor’s information, as well as that of Devon White who teaches “how to be at your best” by adjusting your physical body—something that Taylor writes about. Eckhardt Tolle’s A New Earth also addresses being present.

Copyright 2011 Rebekah Luke

Come for a Reiki experience

Would you like a Reiki experience? Come to my tent at the Hawaii Wellness & Healing Expo for a mini session. The Expo is happening Saturday, Jan. 22, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Aikahi Park Shopping Center in Kailua, Oahu. I am a Certified Independent Reiki Master, 10th generation from Dr. Usui through Mrs. Takata.

Reiki is a form of hands-on healing that helps to balance, harmonize, and contribute to the feeling of being whole.  We all need healing every day. If you are curious, there is more information about Reiki on my blog page; click on Reiki Healing by Oelen.

Up to 40 exhibitors and vendors are participating. You may click on the Hawaii Wellness & Healing Expo link in the first line of this post for a general description of the whole event. To find me, look for a tent decorated with a big stalk of green ti leaves! See you there!

Look for my tent with a big stalk of ti leaves

Gathering kukui nuts and re-landscaping for a play space

Aged kukui nuts prior to cleaning and polishing into Hawaiian jewelry

The studio and its surrounding garden of fruit trees and raised vegetable beds is not my choice for a toddler to play in, so I’ve cleared out the heliconia under the avocado tree to plant a soft thick green ground cover of clover with Miss Marvelous in mind. She likes to explore and play in the outdoors.

Those following the progress of Miss Marvelous may see what she looks like at 16 months this September. I snapped this image in the car on a shopping trip. She loves shopping!

The heliconia patch was there since purchasing our place. It has survived with not much care for more than 26 years. When the patch was full and thriving, gathering the fallen avocados in August was like hunting for Easter eggs in a forest.

Off and on since trimming the plants to the ground I’ve dug up roots, runners, sprouts, as well as rusty iron pieces from the old VW bug, now in its last disintegration phase.

Just by running my fingers through the coarse soil, I found lots of old, old kukui nuts, whole ones and halves of different colors—black, brown, white, multi—from the neighbor-in-the-back’s tree on the other side of the panax hedge. They were easy to find, a meditative search akin to shell seeking.  In all our years here I never gathered many.

Today I thought I’d rescue the nuts for my friend Kamakea who turns them into jewelry, and I saved them for her.

The kukui fruit with its outer skin covering or husk still intact. On the tree they are a gray-green color.

Next I looked for kukui nuts that were freshly fallen for another friend, Cathy, who makes inamona, a roasted nutmeat relish mashed with paakai (salt) and used in Hawaiian cuisine.

It is a long process to prepare inamona, about as long as it takes to make kukui nut jewelry. Cathy said, as long as the outer covering is still intact, it’s good for inamona. Kukui nuts are seasonal, and they are starting to fall now.

Sure enough, in and among the fallen dried leaves in the corner of the lot were these round fruit. So I scooped those up too. When I have a few more, I’ll deliver them to Cathy.

The kukui tree (Aleurites moluccana) is amazing. It has many uses. It is a canoe plant originally brought to the Hawaiian Islands by Polynesians who arrived here by canoe. You can spot the tree in the mountains by looking for light, mint-green-colored leaves.

In Hawaiian culture the kukui is one of the kinolau (forms taken by a supernatural) of the Hawaiian pig god Kamapuaa; the shape of the leaf resembles the head and ears of a puaa (pig). Freshly plucked leaves with stems on are arranged together by knotting the stems make beautiful lei (wreaths). In laau lapaau (Hawaiian medicine), the mashed kernel, as in inamona, is a laxative and prescribed for relieving constipation.

It is often called the candlenut tree. Kukui means light. Hawaiians skewered the oily kernels and burned them for light. The oil is the preferred oil for polishing wooden utensils for food, such as umeke (bowls) and platters. You can now find the oil on the commercial market as a cooking oil and in cosmetics.

The kukui tree also provides wonderful shade. Mahalo e ke Akua! Combined with the canopy of the avocado tree and a ground carpet of hardy clover, I envision a delightful play space for Miss Marvelous. She’ll just have to duck during the month when the fruit fall.

Copyright 2010 Rebekah Luke

Artist’s unforgettable memoir

Once upon a time in 1994, not too long ago, I went to a Hawaiian place, a place of healing.

Through the treetops I could see glimpses of the Ko‘olau mountains. Patches of sunlight danced on colorful impatiens, and the sound of civilization gave way to the melodic symphony of the shama thrush. How enchanting, I thought. This feels like paradise. The trail skirted dense bamboo on one side and cultivated ti plants on the other. I could hear the stream running, and farther along, soft voices below. When the view finally opened up I saw up close the back of an amphitheater-headed valley, and, below me, a stretch of green terraces planted with kalo. To the left was a small house. This was unforgettable ‘Ioleka‘a, and Anita lived here.

Anita’s Place	Kaiwikee	Edge of the Forest

Anita was an inspiration to me. I met her through our work with Ka Lahui Hawaii. She took care of the land, and it took care of her. I met the family members who together with Anita own the private Native Hawaiian kuleana, and after a while they welcomed me in to paint the landscape.

Over ten months, starting in February when the ‘awapuhi ke‘oke‘o (white ginger) bloomed — I still recall the sweet scent — and until a solo show exhibiting the work opened,  I hiked in and out many times and made more than a dozen oil paintings, starting with “Anita’s Place” that developed into the triptych above.

I attached pontoons to my easel to prevent the legs from sinking into the mud of this lo‘i land. I learned to smell and listen for the rain, just in time to cover my palette and don my rain gear. Sometimes Ei Nei the golden retriever would keep me company, but only until the mistress returned.

On November 5, 1994, a day after the show opened, I wrote:

I am so glad I made these paintings. Things are different at Ka ‘Ili ‘Ioleka‘a now. The goat’s gone. Got loose and took off. The papaya tree’s down. A couple more lo‘i are being prepped for planting. One of the mango trees on the trail fell. More people and the laws of nature bring constant, dynamic change.

Anita and I picked ho‘i‘o for the art show reception. One needs a good eye to spot those fern buds. Anita refused payment, even though I explained that was her income. A gift from the ‘aina, she said.

For a month the paintings are on exhibit at Leeward Community College. People like them. They really look at them. It is as though some folks have never seen a painting. It’s refreshing to see some of the green of the windward side of the island over here where it is drier. Sort of like a shot of menthol, a visitor said. When art evokes an emotional response, when it communicates, then it is successful. These images are.

These images stop people. They are scenes that people can relate to. They bring back memories and stimulate discussion. Instead of talking about budgets and college programs, they talk about their childhood experiences in the lo‘i, or on the ‘aina, on a neighbor island, when they went hiking, or … What more can one ask for in a response?

Gloria Foss, my teacher, attended the opening, and I asked her for a critique. She said there was almost no blue or violet as local color, but predominantly greens and reds, although I used blue and purple in the mixtures. In other words, it appeared that I’d used a limited palette. “Push the green as far as it will go, into blue,” she said. “Use cloud shadow to put more violet in the mountains. Use more cloud shadow everywhere to develop focal points. Focal points, yes. Work on developing those. That’s why the piece “Anita’s Place” works well. You’ve set up the little house as the focal point.”

The Leeward Community College Foyer Gallery was set up by Melvyn Sakaguchi when he was provost as a place where emerging artists could show their work and receive a little technical assistance from the college before heading out further on their own. Alan Leitner, the curator, thinks the campus galleries will become more important because they will be the places where the reviewers and critics go to see art.

Most of the ‘Ioleka‘a paintings went to buyers on opening night, and I donated some of the proceeds to Ka Lahui Hawaii. I still have the 90-inch-by-24-inch triptych and a couple of favorites in my collection.

Copyright 2010 Rebekah Luke

Flying moths over Kaneohe Bay

Cool light northerly
winds meet odd-looking sailboats
Kaneohe Bay

Up on hydrofoils
small fast single-handed craft
skate on calm water

Iridescent wings
of high-tech mylar sailcloth
look and fly like moths

Stressed out? Take a few moments to view, hear, and feel what it’s like on Kaneohe Bay in the shadow of the Ko‘olau mountain range on a partly cloudy afternoon.

Taking time to relax and being mindful of the present is healing. Though some moments are anxious, as when awaiting a tsunami (yesterday) or faced with other disaster, it does a body good to rest and renew one’s spirit. Paint a canvas. Give and receive Reiki. Or go sailing! Last Saturday Ken and Georgia called with a kind invitation to see the moths on the bay, so we abandoned other plans and went!

We had fun making the movie. Turn up the speaker volume of your computer and enjoy!

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Copyright 2010 Rebekah Luke