Reiki, Holistic Massage Therapy & Creative Practices to Support Deep, Soulful Living
I’m Emma Freeman, a heart-led Licensed Massage Therapist, Reiki Therapist, Artist, Writer and Teacher inspired to do soul work in this life, work that connects and restores the relationship between our miraculous, powerful bodies and our deep, expansive souls.
I love to listen through touch…listen to the body and all of the tender wisdom it holds through writing poetry, through giving massage or Reiki, through mindful stitching, through meditation, through listening to someone share a story with me, through dancing and laughing, through crying and cooking…it’s through touch that I’m learning what needs to be lovingly held and what is, through that gentle holding and compassionate witnessing, ready to let go and release to create more spaciousness and lightness within. I’m drawn to the places where the body has disconnected from the soul in some way, where there is a block or a knot or restriction of energy and how we might begin to feel into those tight places.
I find that when I turn towards those places with love and slow presence rather than pushing or numbing them away or looking for a quick fix, they often hold insights and tender lessons for me to learn. When I touch those places within myself or someone else, that mysterious hidden river of light that flows through each of us seems to unclog a little and energy seems to flow more easily and freely. We seem to feel more fully here, more fully alive in these bodies. It is so beautiful and empowering.
I was guided to this work after many years of a difficult healing journey and spiritual awakening that brought me back home to my wounded body and soul that were in desperate of care. For years, I dove deeply into shadow work, therapy of various kinds, meditation and mindfulness and discovered a rich, fertile space within that held insights and medicine I didn’t know I needed. I have struggled through and healed from multiple addictions including to alcohol from which I’ve been sober for three years, an eating disorder, obsessive compulsive behaviors, depression, anxiety and childhood trauma. Through my ongoing healing journey, I have been developing a strong relationship with silence, stillness, intuition, play and my deep sensitivity which are all essential parts of how I live now.
I completed a 650+ hour massage therapy program at Everyday Bliss in Waukesha, Wisconsin in 2023 and am certified in Reiki levels I, II and III in the Usui lineage. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy and Studio Art from Alverno College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and have worked in the arts and arts education for over 20 years.
I’m a Buddhist, sober and a highly sensitive person. I live in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin with my wonderful family and love to read, write poetry, connect with nature, cook, listen to music, play, have deep conversations, laugh, watch movies and spend time with my family and soul friends, two of which are beagles.
Online Creative Classes to Support Deep Expression. On-Demand, Self-Paced with Instant Access.
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Make Fabric Meditation Books
This class focuses on slowing down, working intuitively and exploring stitching as a meditation practice. There are over 35 short videos included with a variety of stitches, incorporating nature, burying the books and more. Great for beginners or experienced stitchers.
$55
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Make a Slow Stitched Contemplation Cloth
We'll work with soft fabrics and thread to gently go inward, reconnect with silence and stillness as healing spaces where wisdom, insight and release naturally unfold. This practice is intuitive, calming, deceptively simple and very deep and surprising. It can help support people through grief, transitions, recovery from addiction, healing from injuries, depression and anxiety and more. It’s great for beginners and experienced stitchers of all ages.
$45
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By the Light of a Poem: A 30 Day Soulful Writing Journey
In this class, I guide you through a simple daily writing practice to discover what wants to move up and out of you on to the page. I share 30 poems all by different poets along with simple prompts to spark your writing each day. This is intuitive, automatic, free writing with no rules, right or wrong, good or bad. The focus is on being present, open, receptive and allowing ourselves to feel and express what emerges in the moment. What continues to happen through this process amazes me for myself and for so many others-it is gently empowering and transformative.
$45
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Make Wabi Sabi Mixed Media Books
Play with paper, fabric, ink, stitching, found nature, mark making and more while exploring the beautifully rich Japanese philosophy of wabi sabi that is rooted in Zen Buddhism. Explore principles like simplicity, subtlety, spaciousness, impermanence, imperfection and mystery through the creative process of book creation.
$55
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Soul Messages: A Found Poetry Workshop
Explore an intuitive, playful way of creating, discovering & receiving poetic messages from gathered words we cut out from magazines. We will expand and deepen our relationship with the energies within language and discover hidden messages within the pile of words that will surprise and delight us. This is a meditation practice that can open us to deeper knowing and a connection to our subtle sensitivities. It can also help support writing practices and what emerges can become prompts for other writing or creating.
$45
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Zen and the Art of Nature Weaving
Learn to create beautiful, simple weavings on pieces of nature found on walks. Connect more deeply with the incredible world around you and within you through this slow, meditative process. We’ll explore and weave in Zen Buddhist teachings and practices along the way.
$45
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Slow Stitching Class Bundle
This bundle includes these classes that incorporate slow stitching practices:
-Make Fabric Meditation Books
-Make a Slow Stitched Contemplation Cloth
$75 ($100 value)
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Book Making Class Bundle
In this bundle, you get my two book making classes at a discounted price.
This bundle includes these classes:
-Make Fabric Meditation Books
-Make Wabi Sabi Mixed Media Books
$85 ($110 value)
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Poetry Class Bundle
In this bundle, you get two of my poetry classes for a discounted price.
This bundle includes these classes:
-By the Light of a Poem: A 30 Day Writing Journey
-Soul Messages: A Found Poetry Workshop
$70 ($90 value)
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Wabi Sabi Books Contemplation Cloth Bundle
In this bundle, you get access to these two classes:
-Make Wabi Sabi Mixed Media Books-Make a Slow Stitched Contemplation Cloth
$75 ($100 value)
Book a Reiki Session or Reiki Massage
(offered at my restorative space in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin)
Reiki is a gentle hands on technique that originated in Japan. It helps calm the body and relieve stress so it can heal on multiple levels-physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. I offer Reiki sessions that combine energy healing using gentle touch, aromatherapy and sound. My Reiki Massage sessions add in relaxing massage to help deepen the level of relaxation of the body. Clients are invited to tune inwards and notice any subtle sensations that arise in the body during the session which we will talk about at the end of the session. Often clients feel peaceful and lighter after a Reiki session or Reiki Massage.
My Art as a Spiritual Practice: What I Have Created
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Fabric Meditation Books
I use stitching as a meditation practice to create small, intimate fabric books with natural materials, old textiles and found nature.
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Buried Meditation Books
I bury many of my fabric meditation books in the ground and then dig them back up, inviting and exploring transformation, alchemy and collaboration with the earth’s powerful healing energies. This practice has been deeply healing for me.
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Contemplation Cloths
I create large slow stitched cloths with simple running stitches (or slow walking stitches) as a practice to find spaciousness and openness within me to ponder, to feel, to explore, to go deep.
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Poetry as Medicine
I write poetry as a way to go deeper within myself and the world, to feel and connect, to release and let go, to listen, to lovingly touch what needs care and attention. It is a practice of the Zen Not Knowing or Beginner’s Mind - I never know what I will write when I sit down, but something nudges me to begin and when I do, I am amazed at what emerges on the page and how it makes me feel every single time.
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Soul Messages: My Found Poetry Meditation Practice
I sit down with a clear intention to be open and receptive, I put on flowing music and I begin to feel into the energy of the words I cut from magazines. As I slowly move words around, intuitive messages begin to emerge that resonate deeply and subtly with me. It feels like I am receiving the messages or guidance rather than writing the messages myself. It’s magic and so healing. The key is to allow plenty of time - usually an hour or more, if I rush, the depth isn’t there.
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Wabi Sabi Scrolls
I explore the Japanese aesthetic philosophy of wabi sabi that is rooted in Zen Buddhism through the practice of creating small, intimate hand stitched scrolls. I practice silence, spaciousness, impermanence, interconnection, imperfection and the other beautifully rich qualities of wabi sabi during the creative process of making these scrolls.
“The world doesn’t need more successful people. The world desperately needs more healers, restorers, storytellers and lovers of all kinds.”
-dalai lama