Joanne McNamara

Permissions for Healing Joanne McNamara

Permissions for Healing was born of the authors' attendance at a Reiki Master class at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health nestled in the Berkshire Mountains in western Massachusetts. This book includes artwork and poems inspired by permission slips provided to the authors during the class. It was suggested that the students give themselves permission to Begin, Explore, Inspire, and more, when they returned to their normal life after the class to help them begin a process of self-discovery. Many things happen in our lives to make us forget that we have the right to experience feelings, thoughts, creativity, etc. We have jobs, families, friends, pets, responsibilities, habits (good and bad) that consume our time and being. It is sometimes challenging to remember that we must honor ourselves and grant ourselves permission to be, feel, and express our individuality. This helps give us the ability to heal ourselves and others. Never has there been a time as important as now to experience self-care and love. As Helen Wagner, the artist, created a painting for each of the permissions, Joanne McNamara, the poet, would write a corresponding poem and vice versa for 21 days. They found the assignment to be effortless and took to heart the freedom and excitement of creativity, even though they had just met for the first time during the course. The paintings and poems were exhibited in Cushing, Maine during the summer of 2018. From that exhibit, there was a request for a book encompassing the art and poetry that might be useful to those struggling in life. This book brings back memories of childhood games in Permission to Play and touches on vulnerabilities in Permissions to Cry, Heal and Forgive. Permissions to Dream, Believe and Be ignites the wonder available in each of us. The whimsical, brightly colored art includes many hands that signify from where the universal energy of Reiki flows. The book also includes free space to write and/or draw your own permission slips. Maybe this will inspire a dream to be accomplished, a sorrow to be healed, or a load to be lifted from daily life activities.