I’ve been feeling a little short on self-care or physical care lately as well as short on relationship care. It feels like we’re constantly “running out of time” for the things we need or want to do in a day and simple things like hugging each other get shuffled aside. My husband has been having a problem with his leg that is making us worried and I feel like I’m so busy with the baby that I have trouble making time for quality time with my other kids. Today, when I read the prompt, I knew I couldn’t work in a full bath, but I thought it would be fun to do footbaths. Following the inspiration (as is one of our year’s mottoes) before dinner, even though it wasn’t particularly good timing and there were other things we could or should have been doing, I set up footbaths for my husband, our daughter, and me. We used salt from the salt bowl ceremony at my mother blessing and “magnify your purpose” essential oil blend. My daughter picked out a crystal to add to each bath—rose quartz for my husband, amethyst for me, and snowflake obsidian for herself. Though I didn’t expect them to be interested, after we settled in, my older boys came running out and said, “hey, we’re doing footbaths!” and so we got one set up for each of them too (using drawers from a little plastic dresser! Another reminder about following the inspiration rather than waiting for “perfect”). We sat there enjoying ourselves even though our rolls for dinner got cold while we were soaking. After the baths, I gave each of the kids and my husband a foot massage and reiki with mandarin orange lotion. I tried to skip my own foot massage because we needed to get back to dinner prep, but my husband did mine and it was lovely. This was a really nice, healing, loving mini-ritual and I’m glad we did it.
As I read today’s lesson, I also thought of two “healing water” experiences I had last year with ceremonial baths:
WoodsPriestess 