One of the basic tenets of Reiki is that Reiki does the healing and the healer is just a conduit for the healing energy. While the healer can ask for the healing he or she thinks is needed, sometimes what’s really in need of healing is not clear. However, Reiki always goes to the issues most in need of healing even if the healer is unaware of them. A Reiki treatment for a beautiful adolescent cockatoo named Birdie illustrated the lesson that Reiki often brings about healing in surprising ways.
Birdie was boarding at a pet shop where I offered Reiki with my daughter, Laura, many years ago. The first day he arrived, Birdie screamed non-stop at the top of his lungs, to the dismay of everyone within earshot. The staff was frantic and felt they could not endure the racket for the month they had agreed to board him. They asked us to help, if we could. I stood near the cage, hands lowered by my sides in an offering position, and asked Birdie’s permission to give a treatment. Within minutes Birdie became absolutely quiet, gradually moving closer and closer to me until finally he was pressed against the side of the cage, with his head hanging low and eyes closed, relaxed and looking comically blissful.
After I finished the treatment, he was much quieter, shrieking only a few times. Just before I left, one of the staff suddenly had the idea of putting Birdie’s cage in the window, where he could see the people outside as well as the activity in the shop. They moved him, and he never shrieked again, behaving perfectly for the rest of the month. The source of the problem was healed in a way I could never have anticipated!
