When I was 12 years old, I lost my vision. The keyboard became my main avenue of communication, and my hands and wrists often ached from the repetitive stress of constant typing. I started massage school hoping I might learn how to treat this discomfort through receiving massage. What completely surprised me is that my healing came not from receiving massage, but from giving it. 

A week into school I had the opportunity to give two very deep, full-body massages. Considering the pain I’d certainly have afterward, I thought to myself, “Well, there go my hands.” 

The next morning, though, my hands were less stiff and sore than they’d been in months. As I continued practicing deep-tissue massage, my hands and wrists only improved. Now, I hardly have any discomfort, even though I still type frequently. 

This really makes sense. The hand is built for manual labor. Activities like typing wear out the tissues with light but constant aggravation, and putting my hands to work the right way began the restoration process. 

I cannot ignore the lesson I learned about the paradoxical beauty of human existence. It is through healing others that we find healing for ourselves. It is through giving that we truly learn to receive. It is through touching our deepest brokenness that we, at last, can become whole. 

  Ray McAllister is finishing massage therapy training at the American College Massage School, Elkhart, Indiana, campus. His other interests are poetry, amateur radio, and origami. While Ray is blind, he finds joy helping others see the beauty of living.