Monkey Business

I witnessed the most incredibly wonderful moment of healing over the weekend. As a counselor who believes in the potential for human beings to experience various forms of healing (unlike MJagger who finds counseling to be a crock of shit...even tho she provides counseling to clients--go figure), it is always heart warming to be part of such a marvelous event.

We were invited to have a little Italian dinner at Master Reiki & Blue Eyes' house. Good friend Diastema Grrrl offered to bring the Italian Dinner while we provided some morsels of chocolate and some ice cream (we all know our strengths). Master Reiki's sister, Souther Sis, was also in attendance, as she had been here for the week helping MR continue on the path to health, so that was a wonderful addition to the evening's low key activities.

It was nice to see Master Reiki upright and not in overwhelming pain. She and her sister had been to the surgeon earlier in the day. The doctor had removed the stitches-- Southern Sis acknowledged that this had indeed been a painful ordeal--and he had dressed her "nubbin" (as she calls it--the now missing ring finger) with some steri strips, while dressing Tall Man in a white sock. While this made it pretty easy to see the "mauled" hand (which I thought looked incredibly better than I ever envisioned), it wasn't scary enough to make the wife go screaming out of the room or anything. While we were talking, Diastema Grrrl arrived with pizza, pasta and salad in hand.....she also had a small gift box and handed it to MR.

Now, at first, I thought the worst. See, when I was a kid, we used to cut a circle in the bottom of a small jewelry box (the kind with the pretty gold lid) and then stick one of our fingers in the hole, surrounding it with cotton. That way, when the person was told to open the box (while you continued to hold the box), they'd take off the lid and see a finger as a gift. I had a moment of terror as I thought Diastema Grrrl was giving MR a finger. Shame on me. I absolutely know better than that, but I confess my shameful first thought of a "finger in the box" as part of my overall rehabilitation in life.....

We all gathered round as MR opened the lid....and inside was the cutest sock monkey finger puppet on the planet as illustrated above--really--that is the exact finger puppet Diastema Grrrl gave MR--I believe made by Lucuma Designs via the local fair trade store. Mama monkey, baby monkey, two tails.....incredibly, delightfully fabulous! We all laughed loudly as Master Reiki took the finger puppet out of the box. I mean, how can you not laugh at a finger puppet sock monkey?

I want you to imagine a lady with no ring finger putting a sock monkey puppet on her hand. Really. Have a visual, because it is a very funny thing to see.

Master Reiki put the puppet on the nubbin. It was hilarious! We hooted and hollered and giggled and snorted......

.....While others continued to laugh, I stopped, tipped my head, held my breath and grabbed on to that one single, beautiful moment when MR unexpectedly experienced the first shred of healing.

It was an overwhelmingly powerful moment, one of which I will not forget. Diastema Grrrl's thoughtful and fun gift had just transformed a world of pain--both physical and emotional--to a place of acceptance, of love, of healing. All in the confines of a kitchen, all through a little mama and baby monkey finger puppet.

There was so much love and laughter and healing in that room that it was almost ridiculous. It left this counselor's head spinning. You can't pay for therapy like that. I doubt anyone else noticed it. This counselor did not miss one millisecond of it.

That little finger puppet was busy all night long. I have a boatload of photos of it on my cell phone (you know, the Horizon phone I hate), so ask and I shall show. Monkeys ate dinner with us, danced around the table, posed for photos, hung out while we visited.

There is much, much more healing to happen and it will be a long, yucky road. From confronting the lawn mower to going back to work to the various therapies, it will be a long, unanticipated road. But, the road will be a little less painful thanks to a good friend and a silly puppet. And so, I dedicate this blog to Diastema Grrrl for this extraordinary gift....and, I'm not talking about the tangible gift...... makes me proud--and eternally grateful--to have such wonderful friends. And monkeys. Thank god for sock monkeys.

Who cares about "She Who Must Not Be Named" when you've got great things like this to think about??