MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

“Dedicated to Our Four Fallen RCMP Members”

Welcome to the spring 2005 edition of the C.R.A. newsletter. In this issue we have three excellent articles to share with you. Our stories submitted this month are from Joanne Stevens of Burlington, Kirk Pleasant from Vancouver and Claudette Godin from Richmond. We always look forward to hearing from you, and your Reiki stories. We hold the intent that all that our new and old reiki practitioners can learn from your experiences with Reiki.

For all that dropped by CRA booth at the Wellness show in Vancouver this past February was pleasantly surprised by its new look. Barb Weston spent many hours designing and sewing new table covers and backdrops for the booth that included the CRA colours and logo. Not only did the booth look very professional, it looked fantastic. I would like to thank Barb and all of her team members for making the wellness show a huge success for the CRA.

In This Issue About the CRA Member in Focus Integration, Volume 1 Bald-Faced Hornets 13th Annual Wellness Show Energy Follows Intent CRA 2005 AGM Reiki Helpers Book Review Reiki Shares & Exchanges Announcements Advertising

Work in Toronto with the Municipal Licensing & Standards Department to give Holistic Practitioners their own business license separate from the adult trade industry is still ongoing. We are moving slowly in order to protect the vested interest of our own Reiki practitioners but of other modalities. We are having monthly meetings at City Hall with all the stakeholders. Revisions to the bylaw drafts are ongoing and followed up by conference calls with all parties concerned. I will keep you all advised when developments of these efforts move on to the next stage. Once again I would like to remind all members of the AGM coming up in Vancouver July 9th. We have a wonderful day planned and hope to see you at the Lonsdale Quay where your board members look forward to meeting with you. Registration will be required to ensure that we have the appropriate space booked for the day and we can confirm our planned luncheon with the caterers.

Blessings,
Bonnie Smith
President CRA

ABOUT THE CRA

The Canadian Reiki Association: We provide our members with a national voice; encouraging high educational standards through our Code of Ethics, promoting ethical practices and teaching; assisting the public with referrals to Practitioners and Teachers; and is committed to enlightening and educating our communities about Reiki.

We truly welcome your comments, criticisms, and feedback. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

MEMBER IN FOCUS - is

Nicole Lafleche, RP-CRA, Vancouver, BC

Tell us how you were introduced to Reiki

A few years ago, I became determined to change my lifestyle and improve my health. My journey began at home with short daily meditations where I worked hard to find focus. I finally realized that all I had to do was open up my heart, listen, see and hear the messages that were coming my way. One of those messages was Barb Weston's (currently the Vice-President of the CRA) advertisement in the Common Ground beckoning me to try Reiki. At that time I had no idea what Reiki was but understood a bit more after reading Barb's website and I knew instantly that Reiki would help me. Indeed it has, in ways that I would not have begun to imagine all those years ago. After my third treatment I knew I wanted to learn how to use this amazing 'tool' that made me feel so good, that energized me and relieved the stress and tension of my daily life. I wanted to use Reiki with my family and friends and anyone who would let me practice with them. Through great fortune, I had people lining up to experience this 'magical thing' I was doing with my hands. I was always quick to explain that Universal energy was being channeled through me to the recipient and the constant reaction of "wow that was amazing" after each session propelled me forward. I wanted to become a full-time practitioner and have my own business so that I could help as many people as I possibly could. I thought and planned and researched and practiced. Suddenly I was confronted with "the" dilemma that so many of us face - how can I charge people for something that doesn't belong to me, for something that is Universal, something that promotes such good for people. So I analyzed, and debated and discussed this issue with myself, my Guides, my family, my friends and my mentors. Then one day, with great clarity, I realized that Reiki is not for sale, that one cannot charge for Reiki, but one can charge for their skills, their time, their effort, and their space. From that moment on I set my plan in motion. I was living in China at the time and knew that I would return home, to the majestic west coast of British Columbia where I would begin my business. And that's what I did just a few short months ago. With the love, support and encouragement of my family, my partner Joe and my friends, Reiki Plus opened its doors in January 2005. I am thrilled to report that I am practicing and teaching Reiki regularly and that I love every minute of it. My ultimate goal in life is to help create world peace and I have no doubt whatsoever, that Reiki helps us to find our inner peace, and as we find that inner peace, we become another link in the chain of people working towards a happier, healthier more peaceful world.

What is your major focus for 2004?

My intention is to practice, teach and promote Reiki and other healing modalities on a full-time basis, not only as part of my business but as a person in service. I'm drawn to the Children's Hospital and I am currently developing a presentation to bring forward when the time is right so that Reiki can be shared with all those little ones who are ailing.

Tell us about the contribution you see yourself making to the CRA

I am committed, in a professional and ethical manner, to promoting the CRA as the great national organization that it is and to help it gain more visibility.

INTEGRATION, VOLUME 1

by Kirk Pleasant, RP-CRA

The Shang Han Lun, written in 200 A.D. by Zhang Zhongjing, describes the course of external and internal pathogens in many unique ways. This classic describes the basic principles of syndrome differentiation used today in the clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine. This book, whose title translates into the treatise on Cold diseases and miscellaneous disorders, follows these pathogens through six meridians (liu jing), which, if studied well, could stop and prevent disease from going deeper into the organs of the body. When a cold disease attacks the body, the first place to feel it is on the back of the neck in the Taiyang meridian, affecting the sinuses and oral cavity. This meridian is known as the urinary bladder meridian and travels in two great lines down the back on either side of the posterior midline or Du meridian. If the disease goes deeper, it enters into the Yangming meridian of the stomach and large intestine, creating havoc on the digestive system. Deep to this is the gallbladder and san jiao Shaoyang meridian, where the primary symptoms are fever and chills. A pathogen can go deeper still into the Taiyin, Shaoyin and deepest into the Jueyin channels where, if not stopped, the disease could separate the yin and yang, causing death. This classic describes briefly and accurately each passage of a cold disease into these six meridians. Zhang Zhongjing wrote that if treated properly and in a timely fashion with the correct treatment, a febrile disease could be stopped and expelled from the body.

As reiki practitioners, we have the effective tool of warming our hands when doing a treatment. Our treatments are often guided by a spiritual intention that lingers within us; however, this shouldn't prevent us from actively exploring every aspect of health and wellness that we can. If we study and practice, applying new knowledge and participating with our clients, we can improve the health of those we are treating. The more we fully focus our attention on our hands during a treatment, the warmer they can become. A mind still and receptive can generate great power and heat in the hands of a skilled practitioner. The warmth from our hands could, in my opinion, slow, stop, and ultimately dispel the cold conditions described in the Shang Han Lun.

Heating and warming tools such as Moxabustion and heat lamps are used extensively today to expel cold and warm the body in traditional Chinese medicine's clinical practice. Arthritis is a common example of a primarily cold disease affecting the joints, which is treated with heat. Cold pain is the dull chronic kind that aches, lasts, and is often debilitating. Even using heating pads or hot water bottles regularly can vastly improve this condition. The heat in all of these methods acts to dilate the pores and enter the superficial area, gradually spreading to the meridians. When the correct treatments are used consistently, we can prevent a disease from going further into the organ systems. Chinese medicine uses these tools to achieve the goal of warming and dispelling the cold, which can become stuck in the meridians. We can, by simply using our hands, mimic a moxabustion stick, heat lamp, heating pad, etc. with the added bonus of passing on a very unique energy that we cultivate ourselves and combine with what comes to us from the universe. This warmth that we generate greatly surpasses any electrical device available, because it is coupled with our pure intentions, guided by our intuition, and created from our inspiration. Never forget common sense when treating a patient and if they display signs of heat, i.e. inflammation, hot and burning pain, red complexion, yellow tongue coating, heat is counter-indicated. Harm reduction should always be our number one principle.

Acupuncture has been for me a wonderful way of harmonizing reiki with traditional Chinese medicine. The needles act to direct the focus of attention on very specific points, while reiki acts to fill the person with spiritual energy. This energy flows along the meridians, which have been so accurately mapped out and can be thought of as the vessels of the spirit. Reiki opens, warms and tonifies the meridians with energy and, if done with a solid working knowledge of them, it can be gloriously effective in unblocking the stagnations, harmonizing the imbalances, and boosting the deficiencies that form within. Using these two methods simultaneously can have miraculous results because they compliment each other so well. Both work on the energy systems of the body and both are guided by the practitioner's intention. Of course, acupuncture is a very in-depth course of study and it takes years to acquire competence; however, anyone can study the points and meridians themselves and use this knowledge in their application of Reiki treatments. Crystals, wands, or pointed fingers can be used to direct energy into specific points, activating stagnancies or tonifying deficiencies. Coupling these specific focuses with the general open hand reiki treatment will have a similar effect. It is my goal to facilitate integration in all the facets of healthcare we can. The modes and methods are plentiful and ours for the grasping if we only reach for them. Inspiration, intuition, and intention are three words that I like to combine in expressing what is required for maintenance, and fruition in the modern healer. We have only to think of the new way to approach our respective fields and we have become equivalent to Zhang Zhongjing. To create an entirely new system of comprehension based on experiences with multiple methods is what our future is going to remember and what we, as helpers to those in need, must manifest.

J. Kirk Pleasant, Reiki Teacher & Practioner
Vancouver, BC
www.hhbtm.com/calvindontjump
calvindontjump@hotmail.com

BALD-FACED HORNETS,
MY SUMMER FRIENDS

by Jo-Anne Stevens, RT-CRA

This is a story about how we are all connected, and it is a story that proves we can all do whatever we believe we can do.

In the fall of 2003 I noticed a small wasp nest inside the false Cypress tree that grows alongside our front pathway. Seeing that it was uninhabited, I decided to leave it. Knowing that wasps and hornets do not set up a colony in a "used" nest, I saw no harm in my lack of action.

In the spring of 2004 I was in the process of removing winterkill from my trees and shrubs. I had my right hand inside the Cypress tree roughly tearing away, when I felt pain. Thinking I had scraped my hand on a branch, I continued. Then I felt more pain, and then I realized what was happening. I quickly ran to the other side of the yard.... very quickly. Wildly swarming around my tree were these pretty black and white insects. For some reason, one of the Queens had decided to move back into the abandoned nest and enlarge her old home. The 4 stings on my knuckles were remedied after 25 minutes of Reiki.

For years I have "talked" in my head to various creatures. The numerous yellow jacket wasps that live in the Noma lights of our back deck never leave their nests when we have company. I ask them not to, because they frighten people. They always comply. So the next day gently pulling the Cypress branches aside, I "told" the wasps that I was their friend and I wouldn't hurt them. I could now safely place my hand on their nest, or tap on it to get them to come out and visit with me. After a while I started to pet them, lightly stroking their bodies. These diligent little creatures just kept doing their work on the nest. Many of my clients and students trusting me, enjoyed this wonderful experience as well. At last measurement in mid August, the nest was 16 1/2 inches long from the top to the bottom entry hole.

One morning I went out to visit my friends and say hello, as this was my morning custom. The nest was totally destroyed and there were pieces all around the ground under my tree. Raccoons perhaps? I'm not sure. Only 10 wasps remained, milling about one small piece of their home that remained attached to a branch. I kept petting them and telling them I was sorry. The next morning they were gone. A few days later one sole wasp buzzed around and then left. I took this as a final goodbye. I had never seen their species before, and because of this I had looked them up on the Internet. Like many so called hornets, they are actually wasps. They were rather large and were very pretty with the contrasting black and white. I am so happy that I had taken photographs of them and my hand, prior to the devastation. I hope that one of the Queens was fertilized, and got away safely. Every time I pass my Cypress tree I remember my little friends, and I miss them. I thank the Universe for allowing others and myself to enjoy them. I'll be looking for them this Spring. Maybe our home will be blessed by their presence again.

I believe I can communicate with insects.... so I can. Some native peoples believe they can walk on hot coals, so they can, and without burning their feet. My "truth" is that we can all do everything. We just have to believe it in our hearts.

Essential Wellness Centre
Promoting Your Natural Ability To Heal
Conventional & Holistic Treatments
Jo-Anne Stevens
Owner/Operator
Tel: 905-319-9429
www.essentialwellnesscentre.com

2005, 13th ANNUAL WELLNESS SHOW, VANCOUVER, BC

On February 4th, 5th and 6th 2005, at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre at Canada Place in Vancouver BC, the 13th Annual Wellness Show took place. With over 200 exhibitors participating in the show there was something of interest for everyone who attended this event to see and experience.

The Canadian Reiki Association participated in the show again this year hosting a bold new look using their logo colors of gold and maroon to decorate their 10 x 20 booth. In previous years we have set up two Reiki tables in a 10 x 10 booth but this year we decided to double the size of our booth and add a third table. Adding the extra Reiki table to our booth enabled us to provide 51 more sample sessions over last year.

Over the three day period we provided 131 fifteen minute sample Reiki sessions for show attendees. We charged a small $10.00 fee for each sample session and to our delight, the majority of people stopping by our booth to try Reiki were "newcomers".

1st table left - Adrian Dunham at side & Nicole Filler at head 2nd Table - Yuriko Araki at feet, Nicole Fast at side & Jinny Rodrigo at head 3rd table - Nicole Lafleche at feet & Barb Weston side

Twenty three enthusiastic Reiki practitioners provided the necessary support for the threeReiki tables at our booth over the three day period. This level of participation enabled us to have a minimum of two Reiki practitioners at each table and at times there were as many as three or four practitioners at each table channeling Reiki. Without the support and participation of these practitioners, the weekend would not have been such a success.

Sincere thanks to the following CRA Registered Practitioners for their excellent role in supporting the CRA booth:

Roak Citroen provided 25 hours of support
Judy Cain provided 25 hours of support
Nicole Lafleche provided 25 hours of support
Wendy Fast provided 20 hours of support
Jinny Rodrigo provided 17 hours of support
Catherine Zuest provided 8 hours of support
Andrew Gilson provided 8 hours of support
Nebilah Malfet provided 8 hours of support
Melissa Sevigny provided 7 hours of support
Nicole Filer provided 7 hours of support
Adrian Dunham provided 6 hours of support
Sabina Sanghar provided 6 hours of support
Yuriko Araki provided 5 hours of support
Sandra Sinclair provided 4 hours of support
Asha Parashar-Reynolds provided 4 hours of support
Anne Whitmore provided 4 hours of support
Valerie Farley provided 3 hours of support
Janusz Ostrowski provided 3 hours of support
Setareh Riahi provided 2 hours of support
Sharon Storoschuk provided 2 hours of support
Lorelei Lester provided 2 hours of support

A very special thank you to Judy Cain, Roak Citroen, Nicole Lafleche and my husband, Mark Weston for helping set up the CRA booth on Thursday February the 3rd the day before the show.

Left to right: Judy Cain, Roak Citroen, Lorelei Lester, Jinny Rodrigo & Barb Weston

Mark also took pictures of the booth over the weekend. The pictures may be viewed at www.innerfocus.ca/gallery.htm. Once you load the website, click on "Vancouver Wellness Show 02/06/05" to see the pictures.

Judy Cain played a special role again this year by focusing her efforts on greeting people who were stopping by our booth, answering their questions and then booking them in for a sample Reiki session Her warm smile and loving energy was hard for show attendees to resist. Thank you Judy for doing such an excellent job again this year.

My personal feeling is that the show was a wonderful success. We touched 51 more people with Reiki this year than last year and that is the purpose of these shows, to reach as many people as possible and spread the loving vibration and frequency of Reiki to the general public.

Left to right: Nicole Lafleche, Barb Weston and Asha Parasher-Reynolds

The show is also a wonderful opportunity for our CRA Registered Practitioners to participate and hand out their business cards and brochures to promote their own individual businesses. It is also a wonderful way to meet other fellow practitioners and develop some new friendships and contacts.

If you are a Level II or higher CRA Registered Practitioner residing in the Lower Mainland of BC and you wish to participate in the 14th Annual Wellness Show in 2006 or you have questions about the show, please contact me at barb@innerfocus.ca or call me at 604 985-7302. I look forward to hearing from you.

Congratulations and thank you to all of the CRA Registered Practitioners who participated this year.

Signing off with much Love and Light,
Barb Weston, RT-CRA
Usui Reiki Master Practitioner / Teacher
CRA Vice President

ENERGY FOLLOWS INTENT

by Claudette Godin, RT-CRA

As Reiki practitioners we are very much aware that energy follows intent. It is therefore that much more exciting to read or hear about the scientific community confirming what we, as energy workers, have known since we have offered ourselves as instruments for the Universal Life Force.

Quoting Dr. Douglas Baker's book The Jewel in the Lotus, "Many years ago, a photograph was taken by a radionic camera at the Delawarr Laboratories of some water tap revealing normal radiatory patterns. The water was then taken to a church where it was blessed. It was again photographed and revealed energy patterns in the form of a crucifix, which the reverend minister of the church said was the visual image he held in his mind when he blessed anything. The phenomena associated with the continuum are all related to two factors. The first is magnetism, is some form and degree of subtlety, and the second is the energy source which comes from the higher subplanes of all planes of what is called etheric matter."

We have seen kirlian photography of healing hands emanating and releasing energy while the healer is sending distant healing. But when we see a picture of the power of intention, it really hits home on how careful we must be of own personal thoughts and the need to be focused while administering healing or during any energy sessions. This can be brought further into our daily thought patterns - what are we creating for ourselves?

An exercise that I use to demonstrate the power of thought is as follows:

1. Have the person measure their hands - palm to palm - noting the area used for measurement for continuity.

- in most people one hand's fingers is longer - in this case we pick the shorter hand for next step. (If they are the same - it doesn't matter which hand is used first)

2. Look at your shorter hand and with loving energy tell the fingers to ... grow longer ... longer still ... even longer... Keep looking at your hand to remain focused and keep lovingly repeating the same words for 1 1/2 minutes without stopping.

3. When the time is up - measure the hands again from the same area as previously done - what happened? The fingers are longer.

4. Look at the same hand again and say once only, " Fingers go back to normal."

5. Measure the hands again from the same area as previously done - what happened? The fingers are back to normal.

You repeat steps 1-5 with the longer hand but this time you lovingly tell your fingers to grow shorter. It is a wonderful fun way to get the point across not only with student but also with family and friends.

Love & Light
Claudette Godin, RT-CRA
Wings of Dove Holistic Centre
Steveston, BC
dovewing@telus.net

CRA 2005 AGM

The Canadian Reiki Association will be holding their Annual General Meeting on July 9th, 2005 and this year it will be taking place in Vancouver, BC. Additional information will be emailed out to all members in good standing the middle of April, 2005 (eg: Agenda, Proxies, Registration Forms).

Barbra Hudson, past CRA President and Founder of Blue Matrix Energetics will be presenting an introduction to Blue Matrix healing.

Topics covered will be:

• What is universal life force energy and where does it come from?
  
• Understanding various frequency dimensions in running energy
  
• Understanding Multi Dimensional Healing Assistants
  
• The Blue Matrix Merkaba technique
  
• The importance of the Blue Matrix Body template

Ryon Wexler is a Reiki Master and a certified Aromatherapist and Store Manager of Saje Natural Wellness at the Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver.

Ryon's presentation at the 2005 CRA AGM will include:

1. Safety and precautions of using essential oils during Reiki sessions

2. Benefits of using essential oils during a Reiki Practice

3. Different properties of the essential oils used in a Reiki Practice (with tester oils for people to sample)

4. Methods of application for both client and practitioner

5. Chakras and corresponding essential oils

6. History of how essential oils and aromatic substances have been used in healing and ritual purposes in the past (ie: Ancient Civilizations)

Ryon will provide an information handout for everyone attending.

REIKI HELPERS

by Jo-Anne Stevens, RT-CRA

I call in a number of helpers when performing Reiki treatments. I don't know who does what, but I have learned to be specific with them. Last year I was teaching a Reiki Level I course. The students were in the midst of practicing the hand placements for a full body treatment. Suddenly one of the girls said her hands and arms were uncomfortably hot. I told her that sometimes that does happen, and to just ask your helpers to cool you down. Well this girl was too quick for me! Before I could go on to tell her to be specific and place a request to her helpers that she would cool down to a comfortable temperature, I heard her say - "now I'm too cold". Well she had asked for help and she had received it! I explained how to ask, and she was comfortable with that in no time at all. We all had a laugh. It was also a good lesson; a lesson in "listening", in performing Reiki treatments, and a lesson that we definitely do have helpers.

Essential Wellness Centre
Promoting Your Natural Ability To Heal
Conventional & Holistic Treatments
Jo-Anne Stevens
Owner/Operator
Tel: 905.319.9429

BOOK REVIEW:

"The Five People You Meet in Heaven"

By Mitch Albom

This little, yet powerful book was a #1 New York Times Bestseller. It is appropriate for all ages, and is a quick read for those with limited time. It is a moving story about a man's life, revisited after his untimely death. After his passing, the main character Eddie has five spirits that take him through his life. This is an uplifting tale of how we are all connected, that seemingly small acts can have such an impact on others. This story might make you laugh and it might make you cry, but it will undoubtedly touch you to the very core.

Essential Wellness Centre
Promoting Your Natural Ability To Heal
Conventional & Holistic Treatments
Jo-Anne Stevens
Owner/Operator
Tel: 905-319-9429
www.essentialwellnesscentre.com

REIKI SHARES & EXCHANGES

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Shop at The Reiki Corporate Store:

CRA merchandise featurine our logo is available! T-shirts in navy and red available in sizes S, M, L, XL plus we have Navy baseball caps all available for $15.00 each. Send cheque or money order to:

Corporate Store,
c/o Canadian Reiki Association
PO Box 74072 Hillcrest RPO
Vancouver, BC V5V 5C8

Please include size and colour preferences where applicable! Allow 4 weeks for delivery.

The CRA is interested in ways to bring the membership together so they can get to know each who frequent the Internet via e-mail and website e-mail list discussion group; subsucribe at: cra_news-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

Extra copies of the newsletter are available for special events or to use for promotional purposes. They're great to have for Reiki Shares & Wellness Shows. For additional copies contact: Judy Cain at: reiki@reiki.ca.

We are always looking for items of interest for our members & the public. Send in your articles, special sayings, up and coming workshops, and notices that you would like included in the newsletter. We would also appreciate receiving your book reviews.

ADVERTISING SECTION

AURA WELLNESS CENTRE In Coquitlam, BC, Canada Offering Sessions & Courses in *Chakras & Chi* *Crystal Healing* *EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique)* *Karuna Ki and Usui Reiki* *Meditation Techniques* Sessions Only In: *Aromatherapy, Massage, Sound Healing* For more information, please call Lyn Ayre 604.524.8565 or LynAyre@telus.net CIRCLE OF ONE In Toronto, Ontario, Canada Offering workshops and sessions in Reiki Learning Path Integrated Technique Axiatonal Alignment Energy Sensing and Clearing Techniques Contact Diane: 416.690.6336 diane@circle-of-one.com www.circle-of-one.com 'You can do what you believe you can do.' -- submitted by Jo-Ann Stevens

INDIAN HEAD MASSAGE WORKSHOP Through the Canadian Centre for Indian Champissage. 10.5 CEUs. Classes are available and ongoing throughout Canada. Contact Debbie Boehlen-Maier at 905.714.0298 or see website at www.iaw.on/~debb for upcoming workshop dates.

@2003 - 2005 Canadian Reiki Association
www.reiki.ca
May not be reprinted without written permission.