An image of hands in the sand has stayed with me since I read an article in the Journal of Sandplay Therapy written by Mary Jane Markell. The title of the article is The Manifestation of the Compassionate Heart. Markell writes about the transformative process of sandplay, the subtlety of inner and outer change, the mind-body, the concept of our original nature, and healing and health.
The image is striking; two hands in the center of the tray, along with two feet and a skull. The images made by the client with her own hands, feet and face; impressions in the sand, embellished with items from nature, the fingers depicted by the use of colorful beads. "The left foot contains stones from mesas and cliffs of Southwest America. The left hand contains a spiral mollusk shell millions of years old" (pg. 60). The palm of the right hand contains one large flat grey rock and two smaller shiny black rocks. I believe the thing that has stayed with me is that the client put herself in the tray, literally; the items are naturally, profoundly beautiful; and the result is a powerful image.
Journal of Sandplay Therapy, Volume VI, Number 1, 1997