massage skills will shape his future.
Because he is Thai, his father likes
to say our Jimmy will be a Thai
massage therapist when he grows
up. Because I am American, I like
to say he will be whatever makes
him happy when he grows up.
Regardless, Jimmy has already
learned a basic human skill, that of
touch.
Our children need to learn and
practice simple “home medicine.”
For my family this is Thai massage
and herbal remedies.
When I lived in Thailand, I used
to joke that if you had two Thai
people in a room, someone was
receiving a little Thai massage.
Every family gathering would find
someone seated on a woven grass
mat getting a little neck work.
Granted, my Thai family were
immersed in the practice of
traditional medicine. At the age
of 7, my son’s dad was taught
to massage his grandmother’s
belly with his feet. You see, she
was the only massage therapist
and midwife in their village. She
tended to expectant mums in
the days leading up to birth and
following the child’s arrival. My exhusband remembers her walking
back home when her work was
done, and asking him to massage
her. She taught him by carefully
placing his little
heel bone on
the acupressure
points in her
abdomen and
guiding
him
to lean in. She
passed on to
him the subtle
lessons of touch
and pressure.
On the other
hand, I didn’t
have my first
massage until I was 36. My people
were
great
gardeners
and
foragers, but not one herb made
its way to our table or our medicine
cupboard. Needless to say, no one
ever got a massage.
We live in a different era, thankfully.
Our interest in traditional medicine
is growing, and we are consciously
reconnecting with its methods.
And though I practice as a
Thai massage “professional,” I
teach my child, my clients and