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Huron Expositor, 2002-06-26, Page 121 S -THE HURON 2.2POSIT011, July 11. 2001 News Reiki allows woman to help other people From Pogo ) o someone?' We as a collective need to understand that some people are in pain and when you're standing on a building ready to jump, you're asking for help," she says. Another experience was a series of health challenges including a stroke and a broken foot that left her bedridden for a time. "I laid on my back for a year and a half looking at the ceiling and wondering about deep questions like, 'Why are we here? This can't be all there is,"' she says. After reading from various spiritual traditions including Christian, Buddhist and Native American, she began to believe that the planet and every life form on it is energy and that there is no separation between any of them. "It's our separateness that will kill us. But, once we realize we aren't separate from anything else, we can begin to enjoy the birds, the trees and even the rainy day," she says. And, when her house cleaning business led her to work for a minister who was also a reiki master who taught classes in reiki, Ritchie felt she'd found the tool she needed to be able to help others. "When I channel energy, I tap into the universal energy that's everywhere - in me and out there. Anyone can do it. It's not a special gift God NOTICE For the convenience of our clients SEAFORTH VETERINARY CLINIC will be open THURSDAY EVENINGS by appointment only Please call for appointments •'519-527-1760 McMaster Siemon t INSURANCE M BROKERS INC. BROKERS: Bill Siemon Vicki Siemon Anette McTaggart Ken Hutchison Paul Wettlaufer Joanne Tyndall Ontario Rd. 348-9150 Mitchell 1-800-561-0183 r 1 1 gave me," she says. With reiki, Ritchie says she's able to teach people about the energy systems in their bodies and help them remove any blocks, which they could be experiencing as emotional or physical problems. "When you have your hands on someone else's sacred body, your hands are there for a reason. They're sending total love and compassion to another being," she says. While alternative therapies, like reiki, are viewed with skepticism by many, Ritchie says she encounters large numbers of people, including nurses, massage therapists and other healers, who use reiki in their work. She says Toronto journalist Tom Harpur's book The Uncommon Touch, discusses scientific experiments showing how healers putting their hands on the wounds of laboratory mice sped up the healing process. "Some medical people are very open to reiki and energy work. It's becoming more mainstream. But, just because you're getting reiki treatments doesn't mean you should forget your insulin or any other medication. The reiki just enhances any other treatment a person might be having," she says. Ritchie's clients are guaranteed confidentiality and are offered both reiki treatments, which involve lying on a massage table and receiving hands-on energy on several points of their bodies from head to foot, and spiritual mentoring, which involves talking about their lives. "Some clients need to get up on the table, some just want to talk and some want both. I try to provide a sacred place where it's safe to discuss anything," she says. Ritchie also offers distance healing, which involves sending healing energy to someone far away. "When it comes to energy, there is no distance. You don't have to jump in your car. You just go into the knowing, open up your heart and send love and the universe takes care of the rest," she says. Clients can also learn to do reiki themselves by taking the first, second and third degree reiki classes from Ritchie, who became a reiki master in 1999. r • Scott Hilgendorff photos Students in the advance tennis lessons program work on their skills on the court Thursday morning. Talking tennis Jeremy Welsh practices volleying a ball back across the net in simulated tennis action. Jeremy Walsh lines up another shot. Adam Broome works on his shots as balls are fired at young, advanced tennis students working in sequence at the net to improve their skills. County's nutrient management study gets positive response from Huron East By Susan Hundertmark Expositor Staff By responding point by point to Huron County's nutrient management plan study, Huron East is attempting to be proactive about the issue, deputy -clerk Brad Knight told council at its committee meeting June 26. "The province has been promising legislation for the past couple of years and the county is attempting to fill that void. We've found the work the county's done to be pretty good," Knight said. With Huron East's interim 0 1 I Lose up to 2 1 I Pounds daily I 1 without exercising 1 or dieting I LOOKGOOD' I PEEL (TREAT! I 1 www.Saving4U.com ' ONLINE -COUPONS L Select Health and Fitness Category to find toll free number control bylaws on nutrient management running out this fall, Knight said council is very interested in the yet -to - be released provincial regulations to accompany the province's 66 -page nutrient management act. But, in the meantime, it will continue to work with Huron County on its study. "It might turn out that the county will be more stringent than the provincial regulations because they've been fairly active in nutrient management for some time now," said Knight. "The concern has always been with enforcement and trying to monitor nutrient management plans (NMPs) as best we can. And, the public is demanding there be a follow-up and some way to invoke penalties," he said. In its response to the county plan, Huron East agreed that spreading manure on frozen ground should not he allowed, unless the circumstances are unique or unforeseen. Huron East added that the municipality or ministry should be notified in advance under such special circumstances. Huron East recommended that there be some penalty clause stating a producer could be prosecuted if the NMP is not adhered to and Mayor Lin Steffler asked how that would be enforced. "The province is retaining the authority to enforce it and we would be looking for direction from the province," said Knight. But, Deputy -Mayor Bernie MacLellan said he didn't believe the province will enforce it. Huron East also agreed that setbacks from wells and watercourses should be clearly set out in nutrient management plans and that high -trajectory manure irrigation equipment should be prohibited. "They're really going out of style anyway," said Knight. Huron East's response also agreed that nutrient management plans should be required for dry as well as liquid manure. "We're seeing high soil samples in Grey (ward) with dry manure," said Knight. As well, Huron East agreed that records be kept by the farmer on the date, time, location, acreage and rate of spreading for review when the NMP is renewed but added that soil tests should still be done. While the county plan indicates nutrient management plans should be renewed every three years, Knight said with farms which have a history of high compliance with their NMPs, municipalities might want to consider extending the term. "Certain plans show a balanced approach but there are likely others you are concerned about and would like the same detail every three years," he said. Knight said the regulations concerning expansion of livestock operations is controversial in all three of Huron East's rural wards. "Farmers can get a little bit cute with them," he said. Huron East recommended to the county that barns that are planned to be enlarged in a five-year period be treated as a new building regarding setback distances while minor variances or rezoning that establishes a barn at a reduced distance should cause a barn to be capped at the size allowed. Grey ward Coun. Graeme MacDonald asked if farmers will be able to cheat on construction standards for liquid manure pits which are supposed to have five -inch concrete floors. "Are we going td pay building inspectors to sit there 254 hours which they pour cement?" he said. Huron East disagreed with the county's specification that catch basins be built as monitoring locations when drainage improvements are planned. "If, the NMP is being followed there should not be a concern. It's a lot of additional expense for the farmer with benefit," said Knight. Knight said Huron East is very interested in becoming involved inthe county's suggested registry of lands and facilities subject to NMPs and adds the comment that lower tier municipalities need to develop a more comprehensive approach to maitaining records. County extends ambulance study By Sarah CaldweN Goderkh Signal -Star Staff A three-month study to see how ambulance services across the county have been running is being extended to the end of the year to gain a better understanding of the service. Huron County took over management of the ambulance service on Jan. 1 after it was downloaded from the province. The study of the ambulance service from January to March was done by Jon Hambides, of Pomax Inc., the county's consultant on land ambulance issues. Hambides presented his report at county cottncil on July 5, but said the results were inconclusive and recommended that a request for proposals be issued to provide a two-year continued and ongoing study of.the ambulance deployment and system operation and the development of a monitoring program. Not all councillors thought that the study needed to continue for two years or be ongoing and open-ended. Coun. Carol Mitchell, Central Huron, urged her fellow councillors that if they couldn't accept a two-year study then they should make'it only one year longer. "Don't drop thc ball now. If you can't live with two years, let's make it one." Right now, the county only has three months of data, and most of the policies weren't in place yet, said Mitchell. Council voted to extend the report to one year. They also decided to allow Pomax Inc., who prepared thc three-month study to prepare a cost estimate as hiring another company would delay the study.