I've been talking about having a massage for years, but haven't taken the time.
You know how it is when you're busy - working full time, being a mom, keeping up with the laundry.
It's hard for me to justify taking an hour for myself - just to relax.
Finally, I had a legitimate excuse. It's for work: A story about massage. I could write it better if I had the experience, right?
I put myself in the hands of Eugenia "Jeanie" Keller, a person I've known and trusted for a long time. Formerly a hairdresser, Keller has been cutting my hair for about 25 years when she wasn't off on photography, basket-making or pottery sabbaticals. I knew and respected her hands and their work.
Keller has a room at The Gentle Nudge, a wellness and nutritional counseling center in Hagerstown. It is lovely, as I expected: Soft lighting, beautiful rugs, antique bookcases and a flannel-sheeted massage table that was as cozily comfortable as it looked. Aromatherapy candles gently scented the air. The fragrance was subtle - herbal and clean, not aerosol-air-freshener sweet.