Friday, August 21, 2009

Day 7: But which way is North?

Adult loggerhead sea turtles head their way back to the beach they were hatched when they're ready to lay their eggs.

Bats use a magnetic substance in their body called magnetite to help them navigate.

It's the concept of an internal compass, a kind of mechanism that allows organisms to orient themselves so they can stay on track during long distance travel, like migration.

Like a bird, with wings, I am not. When the sun is just rising or setting in the day, I can maybe academically deduce where North is but the rest of the time, I need a 'left by the red brick building and past the gas station' kind of direction to help me get to somewhere I've never been to before.

I suppose the theory is that our hunting ancestors (aka cavemen) relied on tracking the position of the sun to hunt and to find the most direct way home. That seems to make men stereotypically the one that speaks in cardinal points, e.g., do you not know the difference between North and South?

Women, aka me, on the other hand, relate to a more personal sense of direction. It's all about how the external world relates to me, e.g., go until you see the house with the beautiful yellow flowers and immaculate yard (because that's the yard I want).

Both ways, though, gets us where we need to go.

Until when a woman (aka me) would foolishly step over the sacred line and ask my husband (aka proverbial caveman) which way to turn when I get off the freeway to get to the car service shop.

It's like the meeting of worlds -- that should not.

Perhaps Reiki has a place in this. But I think I'd rather have it help me with the journey toward my dharma, my life's purpose and healing. Leave the shorter trips for me to decipher. For example, I just have to figure out if I can find enough iron for the tip of my nose so I can be like the homing pigeons and turn toward the magnetic North Pole -- at will.

Until then, I'll rely on a modern-day cardinal finder -- my TomTom -- to help me find my way. And, my good sense to stay grounded and internally calibrated as I navigate toward the discovery of my life's full potential.
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Reiki update:
I got to practice on a volunteer today -- yay for husbands! My hands activated the minute I placed it on his crown and subsequent head placements. It was very humbling and exciting all at once.

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