My Vanuatu Experience

About ten years ago I started going across to Port Vila, Vanuatu (a group of islands east of Australia in the Pacific Ocean) to work as an acupuncturist. I would go over for two weeks at a time and treat patients every day. I did this a total of six times over an 18-month period. Port Vila didn’t have an acupuncturist and I was therefore very popular when I went over.

I treated the same patients every day, every second day, or whenever they could afford to come. Some patients even came for each of the ten days that I worked. It was an incredible experience and one I will never forget.

It was on my second last visit that I had something quite extraordinary occur which I thought you might find interesting.

About 4am one morning I was awakened by a deep rumbling under my bed. I initially thought it was an underground train, which was silly of me considering Vanuatu doesn’t have a train-line. I was still half asleep so give me a break okay?

The rumbling intensified followed by a series of jolts and bumps and knocks. Having never been in an earthquake before I was finding it quite surreal until my motel door cracked inside its frame (which was quite impressive seeing as the door was solid wood nearly two inches thick). It was so loud and scared me half to death. The whole event lasted no more than two minutes but it left me shaken (not stirred); and there was no more sleep for me that night.

I got up and went for a walk along Vila Bay (the sun was rising) and felt I had recovered adequately for my day of work. I changed motel rooms (the door couldn’t lock anymore) and then walked to work. But all morning I was hurting my patients with every single needle insertion. I tend to average 1-2 nasty inserts from every ten needles so I was way off my game.

At the time it didn’t occur to me that it could have been the earthquake. But here’s the thing. Was it my energy or was it Port Vila’s energy? By lunchtime I had treated ten patients and hurt all ten. I told myself that I had to get out of the clinic. Normally I would walk down the road to a café for lunch but on this day, I walked down to Erakor Lagoon and sat under a giant tree.

I meditated for an hour (it felt like ten minutes) and then walked back to work. Even without lunch I powered through the afternoon and didn’t hurt another patient.

To this day I have never had a similar experience (I have also never been in another earthquake) and I still haven’t been able to answer my question. Was it my energy or Port Vila’s energy that resulted in my high rate of patient discomfort? Best I can guess is that it was both. I wonder whether any of you have had a similar experience?

Keen to hear your thoughts.

Love and light to you all.

David Hartmann