Healing Art

   She walked slowly down the hall in the pitch-black darkness unable to see anything. Going only by the sound of her footsteps on the hardwood floor and her hand running along the wall to guide her. Her fingers found the light switch, but by flipping it on realized the power was indeed out. Deciding the only hope of getting any sleep at all in this stifling summer heat, she stumbled around in the dark opening all the windows to get at least some air circulating throughout the house. Moments later her head once again hit the pillow to resume a fitful sleep as she thought to herself, “damn stupid rolling blackouts again.” 

   Only a short while later, she awoke once again but this time to the smell of smoke. Coughing, she jumped out of bed and quickly threw her robe around herself to descend her way of escape. What she did not realize was that the electrical fire that had started prior, had now blocked the way out of her home. She was trapped! Looking to the window which sat three stories above her lovely garden, she wondered briefly about the outcome of such a fall, which she quickly outweighed before grabbing the pillows from her bed in hopes of breaking her fall as she jumped. 

   A steady beeping sound beat softly in the far-off distance when she opened her eyes to see that she lay in a hospital bed and the beeping was a monitor giving the indication she had survived. “Oh my God, what a relief!” she thought. Slowly she began to lift herself to a sitting position in bed and noticed that something was off. She didn’t feel quite herself but was unable to put her finger on exactly what was wrong. Spying the call button next to her for the nurse, she reached to press the button for assistance. It appeared to be broken as she didn’t feel the button compress down, but a nurse nevertheless entered the room just moments later. 

   “Glad to see you are awake. Lucky for you to have a few well-placed shrubs growing just beneath your bedroom window. If you’re up for it, we’ll run a few tests to make sure you’re ready to get back up and moving as soon as possible.” The nurse checked her vitals and asked her some basic questions, before ending with, “Just need to run some x-rays for broken bones and if all looks good, you could be home by the end of the week.” 

   Nora felt overjoyed by this possibility, as she had several immediate deadlines looming over her for the upcoming exhibition. A quick recovery was essential to keeping her on track at the gallery. She had worked very hard to get where she was as a curator while finally coming close to finishing the last pieces for the latest public showing of her works. She had no plans of slowing down now. 

   The day after being released to go home, Nora prepared herself for a day of work in her studio. Well-equipped to offer the comforts of home, she had decided to spend the time there to get the remaining pieces done for her upcoming gallery showing while the repairs to her home were being made from the damage sustained by the fire. As she pulled out gesso to start on a smaller canvas, pain shot through her arms. Alarmed at the pain, she went to pick up the bottle she had dropped and realized her hands had gone numb. “No, please not this!” she thought. “I need my hands. What is happening?” Immediately she commanded aloud, “Siri, call Dr. Wassef.” Nora waited impatiently as her call went to voicemail. “Doctor, I need you to call me back right away, it is an emergency.” 

   As she struggled to clean up the mess unsuccessfully, her earpiece rang. “Siri, answer.” The doctor spoke into her earpiece, “Good afternoon, I’m sorry I was detained in surgery. What seems to be the issue?” Nora spoke with urgency, “I am having trouble with sensation in my hands. Do you think you could see me today to diagnose what the problem could be?” Dr. Wassef replied calmly that her tests all came back normal with no damage, but she might have some nerve-related issues due to stress and was referred to a massage therapist. Using the information he gave her, Nora quickly went online to give the necessary info and make her appointment. 

   The place was close enough to go on foot and only minutes later she was walking up the steps to the modest building where her therapy would take place. A receptionist greeted her and led her to the treatment room which was dimly lit with only the table and a chair in one corner, while spa music played softly from one corner of the room. As Nora half undressed and lay under the warm blanket on the table, she realized she hadn’t had a massage in a very long time and found herself looking forward to loosening the tension in her muscles but was skeptical at any probability of a simple massage bringing back the sensation in her presently useless hands.  

    A mature-looking woman entered the room and greeted her in a tone similar to her favorite ASMR artist and asked if she was comfortable. “Yes, thank you. I do feel I need to ask though, do you really think you can help me get feeling back in my hands? I thought massage was just to relax.” Her therapist explained that she was most likely suffering from a severely pinched nerve in her spine which could cause tingling and numbness in the hands and she would do her best to find and relieve it. Nora decided to give herself to the idea, as she really just needed to get back to finishing her project pieces ASAP. Her upcoming art showing was significant in getting her recommended for the most prestigious position at the museum. She took a deep breath and tried her best to unwind, but as usual found this most difficult, and decided to chat with her therapist mostly about the mundane or funny things she observed in people and how she applied it to the realism of her art. 

    An hour and a half passed quickly and Nora felt very relaxed in the presence of this person when it dawned on her that she hadn’t even gotten her name. “I am so sorry for my rudeness in not asking sooner, but what do you call yourself?” The woman answered, “I am Sofia. I will let you get dressed now and there will be water waiting for you outside. My assistant will give you instructions for mobility exercises you can do before your next therapy session. Thank you for visiting today, and please call tomorrow to let me know how you are feeling.” The two women said their goodbyes and feeling lighter, Nora headed back to her studio. 

   Sofia stretched herself out on the foam roller and could of course both hear and feel the cracking in her spine as the fascia tissue released from her muscles. She took excellent care of herself to be able to keep doing what she loved and was happy to have a meaningful purpose despite the circumstances of life. As she finished her day of seeing clients, Sofia was ready for the walk home to a nice meal and soak in a salt bath. She lived a quiet life alone, aside from her assistant living in the small bungalow behind her home. 

   The next day she walked the very familiar route back to her office where her first client awaited her to be seen. As was normal for Sofia being a masseuse as long as she had, she saw many regular clients each week and kept quite busy. At lunchtime, her assistant gave her messages and she was happy to hear that Nora was already starting to hold a brush and felt sensation slowly returning to her hands. Eager for a full recovery, Nora had booked several appointments for the next three weeks. 

   Nora proved to be a good client, listening to the instructions given for exercises between sessions, and delighted in talking to Sofia during her therapy. With each visit, she would ask Sofia more about herself and Nora learned she had traveled to many places all over the world volunteering as a massage therapist in various clinics for patients recovering from trauma. Nora was impressed at how Sofia had obviously seen so much, and she herself had always wanted to travel more. She hoped to have the opportunity soon with a possible job promotion. 

   The weeks sped by and Nora was able to finish her pieces for the exhibition. She knew her work had changed slightly from its usual style, but decided not to overthink this as she had felt a sense of completeness with the finished result. She hoped the reception by critics would be at least somewhat positive. 

   At her last session with Sofia, she invited her to come to her gallery showing and promised she would have a good time even if she knew nothing of art. Sofia seemed surprised at the enthusiastic invitation but graciously accepted and asked if if would be alright to bring along her assistant. “Of course, of course,” Nora said. “Very happy to hear you’ll be able to make it. I love sharing my work with others and seeing what they take away from it.” 

   The night of Nora’s event arrived and she walked through the gallery slowly chatting with several people as they milled about throughout the evening. To her relief, the response had been overwhelmingly positive and many had said that there was a rawness in her work that drew an intenseness of realism that was not there prior.  

   About halfway through the event, she recognized a well-dressed woman enter the room and Nora crossed the gallery floor to greet her new friend. “Thank you so much for coming Sofia. Please have a look around and tell me what you think. I feel as though you helped me create many of the pieces that hang on these walls.” Sofia smiled graciously and replied, “I have no doubt they are spectacular. I can see your work as it shines from the person you are. Although I cannot see them with my eyes, I have felt with my hands the emotions of the person who created them and the beauty that is there.” 

   Nora stood in stunned silence. She had never seen any indication that Sofia was blind and felt embarrassed to have missed such a fine detail.  Nora apologized emphatically, “I am so sorry. I don’t understand how I didn’t ever take notice. You handle yourself with the ease of any seeing person. Sofia gave Nora a warm hug and went on, “Because my vision was weak even in my youth and had further deteriorated over time as an adult, I adapted gradually to the loss. Most people don’t notice it right away either and I am rather happy that they don’t. My inability to see with my eyes has helped me intensify my skill to see with my hands. I also love my work and the value of what can come from any human who is willing to reach out to another.”