Rolfing®

More than ever before, I am interested in connections – the relationships that make us whole and bind us to each other. Obvious distinctions can be made between mind and body, between me and you, between us and the world, but we are nevertheless caught in a network of mutual dependence and influence that is the substantiation of our unity. When all the parts of this network are working together, under each other’s proper influence, our lives are orderly and whole. Indeed, the word “health” comes from the same Indo-European root as “heal,” “whole” and “holy.” To be healthy is to be whole; to heal is to make whole.

Yet the modern approach to health is increasingly divided. For any given problem, we have experts and “quick fixes.” As a social system, the specialist scheme makes sense. It puts the problems of government, education, agriculture, etc. into the hands of the most skilled, best prepared people. The difficulty arises when we apply this approach to the...