It must be Thanksgiving 'cause there's nobody out there.

I needed some alone time from the houseful today so I trudged up to Lake City to attend a thanksgiving yoga class.

It was strange walking through town with all the shops closed and Lake City Way(usually a constant drone of whizzing traffic) so dead.

There were a lot of other people seeking the restoration and reassurance of Two Dog Yogas gentle class on this cold Thanksgiving day.

Annie lead us through the stretches, her soft voice gently encouraging our bodies to relax, to extend, to feel, to be. My chest and neck have been pretty out of whack the last few weeks and I could feel my muscles pulling and protesting painfully against all the bending. I eased up and ran my hand along my levator(neck muscle that raises the scapula). It relaxed slightly and basked in the attention, telling me how much it was hurting... I imagined it purring like a little cat rescued from the cold, luxuriating in the warm tenderness of a loving hand.

I think that's what massage therapists do for people. People are running around in their stressful lives, all out of whack with nobody listening to them. Nobody to stop and hold them, take their hand, cradle their head. It's amazing how good it can feel, just to have a hand touch you, let alone two skilled hands gliding across your muscles attentively, finding those aching tense places and soothing them, smoothing them. Bodies have their own stories to tell, their own unique twists and curves, likes and dislikes, their own needs... Our bodies are us. We often forget it, dragging them along like an inanimate object, something seperate from the thinking core of us, our mind and spirit. But I think no such simple division exists. Our spirit coexists with our bodies, just as much in our fingers, toes, livers and kidneys as in our heads and hearts. Our bodies get twisted with our emotions, with our spiritual struggles as much as they do by physical obstacles.

I guess that's why I'm a massage therapist. I want to reach out and touch people, help them understand what their bodies are struggling with. I want to blend the physical with the spiritual, unearth the connection that is yearning to be acknowledged in all of us. Or perhaps just soothe someones pain for another day.

We all need help, don't we? Even the strongest of us.

Sometime, somewhere in their lives, every single one of us should be able to lay down their burdens and grief, cry out their pain and be held and listened to.

Good Lord, I'm blathering on so, I've forgotten why I started this post. Ah, yes, a quick scroll up and Thanksgiving is the answer.

So, thanks, for listening and thanks to all those who've held me, touched me, massaged and cared for me.

Touch, it does a body good.