The Soul of Saltwater

To say that I am grateful is banal. I don’t feel it has the same weight anymore because it has become a part of every aspect of my work. Everything that I do is with gratitude, because of gratitude. It is important to intimately know it in life, however, when you become rich with gratitude it might become something else. It is bound by humility that comes with the knowing that any day it could all change, a gentleness with everything it has touched. I also humbly acknowledge that I am where I am not because of me, alone. Gratitude and humility come with the symbiosis of a loving community. You.

The work that I do is an evolution of many years, an integration of personal growth and professional inspiration. I am doing what I do and how I do it, because of what I feel is needed by the individual and the community (which is dynamic and ever changing). I feel, literally, with my hands, as well as instinctively, through empathy and attentive listening. Every person that I have worked with has shaped the work I do as a therapist by meeting the observable and unconscious needs of a client. It comes with years of practice, but also a deep love for doing this work.

Creation can require a lot of energy, but where there is love, hard work seems to come more easily. If there is no love, no purpose, there is little reason for manifestation. This space that has been created was initially just an idea. Once the space appeared, that idea was given persistent energy until I had almost nothing left. The enormous blank slate, the feeling of biting off more than I could chew, the frustrating permit process, this completely new venture I wasn’t sure that I was ready for... When I had nothing left to give, the support of loved ones (you) helped to carry that weight and encouraged me to keep going. Just by giving their time to build, repair, shop and decorate, it validated that this space was destined to be meaningful. 

To say that gratitude is in the space isn’t enough. It’s as if the space embodies gratitude. With every person that has stepped foot in its walls, that has become more palpable. I feel it when I am here, and I know that others do too. That “good energy” some of you speak of, that’s more than just the palo santo burning. It’s in every hole that’s been drilled into the walls to hang the shelves and photography. It’s in the wood that was carefully crafted into a bench to welcome tired bodies. It’s in the cooling units that keep us comfortable in a poorly insulated building. It’s also in the name that was soulfully suggested by a classmate that, at the time, was more fitting than we knew. It is in the contributions and time that my loved ones have dedicated to something that I believed in, because they believed in it too. It’s all here, and it is not forgotten. It only grows with every session and every workshop that takes place surrounded by the foundation of love. This is how a space became Saltwater.

There is so much more to Saltwater than massage therapy, which is what I had intended, I just had no idea how that would evolve. And of course I couldn’t know. The alchemical meaning of saltwater is the connection of body and unconscious, the physical and the unknown. It is the work that we do within the space and under its name. It is only natural that it unfolds as its own entity in the same manner. It has a soul of its own.

Within our first year, roughly only seven months were able to be physically present. The creative ideas, workshops and bodywork were put on hold like much of the world, but the gratitude has only grown. This time has been filled with overflowing support of clients and friends who, even amidst their own struggles, think of me and the business. It means so much to me. You mean so much to me.

While I did take time in the last few months to be in the muck and feel the isolation like so many others, coming out of the darkness has proven lucrative. The creative energy doesn’t stop just because appointments do. With this downtime I have had much more time to write, to refine new services like dream work and ritual development, and we are also in process of planning our first outdoor retreat. Just like the cultivation of Saltwater, these ideas are slowly manifesting and I cannot wait to share them with you. The work I do would be meaningless without you because the work I do is meant for you.

There is a lack of words to carry this amount of gratitude, though this was my humble attempt. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to live with purpose and cultivate a soulful business. I’m so excited to see what unfolds in our next year together!

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gp