WATCH OUT MC HAMMER BCUZ YOU CAN TOUCH THIS

My name is deanna and I'm an addict.

That's right...I'm addicted to 2-for-1 Saturday at the Utah College of Massage Therapy. I've gone 2 weeks in a row now and I wouldn't mind going EVERY week for the REST of my life if the massage therapists are as good as Mike and Kevin were to me. That's right--deanna's ideal date is a 2-for-1 and ice cream (or pasta...thanks Nathan).

I posted this as a note on facebook Thursday, June 7, 2007...but I don't know if anybody reads those notes so I wanted to put it up here:

“It is the magic of a touch, the power of a hug . . . that make life joyful.”

I recently have learned how extremely powerful a touch can be. IKEA offered free 15 minute massages for all employees the first week of it's grand opening and I quickly signed up each morning for my spot. It was wonderful! As I sat there taking the relaxation in, I realized the power of a touch. How could this massage heal my aches and pains giving me energy to be willing to finish my shift? Then it came to me...touch! That's how healing began.

Think about how often Jesus heals by touching – or by someone touching him, specifically the hem of his garment. Jesus reaches out to touch a leper and cleanses him. At other times, Jesus rubs mud on the eyes of the man born blind, takes the hand of the temple leader’s daughter whom everyone else thinks has died, puts his fingers in the ears of a deaf man, and Jesus heals them all. Jesus is not afraid to touch those persons who will make him ritually unclean by Jewish law. Jesus uses his touch, his hands, to lift up, to strengthen, to encourage and to heal.

Last week, my 3 year old nephew fell and came up to me crying for me to "kiss it better." I did. He instantly stopped crying and went back to playing. I overheard a little boy tell his father in a store that he had a headache. The father asked what he wanted him to do and offered to kiss it better and the two were able to continue shopping (that scene was adorable by the way).

In the book 'If Life Were Easy, It wouldn't Be Hard' (one of my top 10 favorites), Sheri Dew wrote of a little girl she knew who was afraid of the dark. Every night, she and her mother went through a ritual designed to make her feel secure in her room. But inevitably, during the night, the girl would sneak into her parents' room and climb in bed with them, at which point her mother would carry her back to her room. Her mother tried every argument she could think of to convince her daughter she would be ok. One night she said, "Honey, your father and I are just down the hall. You'll be okay, Heavenly Father is watching over you." To which the little girl responded, "Mom, don't you know? Sometimes you just need someone with skin on." It's true. Sometimes we just need to hug someone, reach out to someone, or have someone reach out to us.

There is just something about contact comfort. I remember several times I turned to a friend when I needed help and he would allow me to come over and fall asleep in his embrace...we didn't talk about what was happening, in fact we would turn on a CD and I would fall asleep crying. He may not know how eternally grateful I am for his friendship and how much I needed that shoulder to cry on -- to know that someone was there to care about me-- but it meant sooo much to me.

Science tells us that a touch triggers the release of brain endorphins — an endogenous analgesic more powerful than heroin or morphine. But touch is more than just a scientific confluence of brain chemicals. Touch tames wild animals, can soften a heart, provides more warmth than a fireplace can, it can calm our worries and give us confidence, and in the end...just feels so good. Oh and the best part about touch is that it's worth a million, but doesn't cost a cent!

Am I saying if you see someone get hurt you should try to kiss it better? Well, maybe...but don't hold me accountable for the reaction...and be careful if it's a complete stranger...boys behave! Just some food for thought. Many know that I like hugs. And when I get or give one I feel recharged and celebrate joyfully. deanna loves you. xoxoxo