Laying on of Hands

For my birthday, which was way back in April, birthday blog coming soon.... Anyway, one of the presents I received was for a facial from a lady I had not heard of. Apparently she is a well-kept secret in our little village and her location is something you would pass by without looking into. Now I know why she is such a secret! No one wants to share for fear that they may not be able to get an appointment! I booked at the end of summer and was a bit surprised that I had to wait 2 months, but figured she might be taking vacation or something and was not bothered.

So this afternoon, I went along expecting the usual treatment routine. Now you should know that I am not really into make-up and skin care and the whole beauty regimen. I do scrub-up pretty good on special occasions, but other than moisturizer and lip gloss, I do not go to much trouble on a daily basis. I have given myself the occasional mask and scrub and overnight cream, and yes I have started noticing the laugh lines are deeper and there is a crease in my brow demonstrating how often I use raised eyebrows as part of my expression. And every couple of years I go to a beauty salon and get a deluxe treatment.

So today I was expecting the usual round of steaming, scrubbing, cleansing, mask, moisturizing, hot-towels and cool eye pads and that I would come out shiny and polished and fresh. But today was different.

It started with the usual steam and light scrub. Then a nice smelling facial cream was smoothed on my skin. And then was heaven. I have had, on occasion, massages where I did not want the end to come. But for the most part, treatments I have had have come nowhere near the Biblical description of the healing power associated with the "laying on of hands". Until today. I cannot begin to describe the various techniques of small circles of light pressure and butterfly-light finger taps combined with strokes along the small muscles and gentle contact on accupressure points. Time did not fly by, it seemed to stand still. I think I forgot to breathe, though the automatic nervous system kicked in and I didn't pass out. For a good 40 minutes or so I experienced the ever-changing variety of techniques developed by Elaine in her 27 years of experience. She has treated burn victims and people with various scars and skin problems and developed her own method of stress relief via massage and she definitely knows what she is doing.

I could feel the tension releasing in my brow and the crows-feet starting to develop around my eyes have been shooed away for a while at least. I not only look younger after her treatment, I feel younger. I had my eyes closed during the massage and when I opened them it was as if I was seeing a new world.

And then she started the cleansing regimen. After cleansing the massage lotion off with the usual steamed towel and a light astringent, she applied a moisturizing cream using large make-up brushes! The feeling of the brushes over my skin with its heightened awareness was a delicious sensation. After a cup of tea and a chat, she finished the treatment with a scalp and shoulder massage to get the blood circulating. I left after 90 minutes feeling more relaxed and energized that I have felt in months. And I thought of 3 people I was dying to tell about this wonderful treat, knowing they would love it as much as I do.

And then I thought of how long I have had to wait to get this first appointment, and I'm now going to have to battle some very selfish instincts before I can share...!