DAY 6: Reiki

i took my daughter to the barn for her horseback riding lesson; she has a standing appointment on sundays at 11am . i have been thinking about changing to a later time because there are two older girls, experience riders, who share a lesson in the time slot before hers that seems to bleed into her time every week.
when we first arrived it was obvious from the staff's body language that something was going on. i had brought izzy in and handed her over to the instructor, then went back to the car to organize some things, and that's where i was sitting, watching. i wasn't finished with what i was doing but decided i'd better go find out what happened. i was told that one of the older girls had been thrown from her horse and hit her head. her friend had gone back into the barn to finish her lesson. the other girl, i assumed, was going to the hospital, but shortly thereafter she reentered the barn, with her reddened, tear-stained face, clothes covered with dirt. she sat in one of the old lawn chairs that flanked the doorway, shivering in her lightweight riding jacket. periodically one of the other riders or staff would ask her how she was doing, or say "i'm so sorry!", to which she would reply, "it's no one's fault", and continued to sit hunched over in the chair. finally, i approached her, asked her name, gave mine, and started giving her a nursing assessment for a head injury. her symptoms made it clear that she needed to be evaluated in an ER today. after discerning that she had driven herself here, we agreed that she shouldn't drive herself. i asked if there was someone she could call and she said "my mom, but i'm not sure where my phone is". i gave her my phone to call her mother. i am trained in reiki level one. after explaining briefly what reiki is, and that it couldn't hurt and may help, asked if she would allow me to give her a treatment while we were waiting the twenty or so minutes until her mother arrived. she agreed, and as i began the treatment i noticed that her shivering was escalating, so i took off my coat and started to put it around her. after a short protest, she gratefully accepted and slid her arms into the sleeves. she calmed, her shivering stopped. i finished the treatment, then went to my car to get the extra pair of gloves and blanket that i keep there and gave her the gloves, wrapped her in the blanket. finally her parents arrived, had a short talk with the owner of the barn, depart.
so today, the gift i gave hopefully provided comfort.