‘The harvest moon has come,
Booming softly through heaven, like a bassoon.
And the earth replies all night, like a deep drum…’ 
~ Ted Hughes, ‘Harvest Moon’

In the Chinese five element theory late summer is the season of Earth element, which represents ‘manifestation’. In the turning of the seasons plants grow from seed in winter, to sprout in spring, to flower in summer and finally in late summer growth comes to fruition and we have our harvest, both of crops and of fruits & nuts of the tress and hedgerow.

Likewise with our day to day lives, the completion of the process of creativity is the manifestation of the final product. And within ourselves; the mind, emotions and spirit exist because they are manifest in the living, physical body.

I teach my students how to touch without causing pain or flinching, by first exploring how to crawl softly on the floor, leaning bodyweight on the Earth, discovering how it is that gravity keeps us connected to the Earth. We transfer this understanding to our technique; leaning on our client, their body becomes our Earth, our support and we relax into this. This is the mechanism by which Shiatsu and Thai Massage allows both giver and receiver to feel more deeply in touch with the body and the Earth, to feel more grounded and supported, to feel more ourselves and how we are manifest.
by Lucy Trend. 10th September 2020.