ginger@ssc-vax.UUCP (Ginger Grover) (09/10/85)
>>> I thought a discussion of our images and experiences of the >>> feminine spirit would be an interesting topic for this forum. I have been studying paganism for over a year now, and in my reading I have encountered many examples of strong, positive images of the feminine spirit, images which seem to be lacking in the American media, especially television. It is as though the sum of human experience were a collection of photos in an album, and most of the photos are of men. Sometimes there are photos of individual women, but more often we are in the background, blurred and indistinct. But if you turn to the back pages you may find clear, sharp photos labeled "Hera" or "Demeter", or simply "Mom". Perhaps it is time to up-date the album. In recent years I have come to have a much greater understanding and appreciation of my own mother, her courage and strength. I have begun to write anecdotes of our family history; my original purpose was just to practice writing techniques, but I've noticed how my mother seems to be the central figure in many of these stories. When I asked her what was the hardest thing she ever had to to, and she talked about the accident my brother had with a dynamite cap when he was about 14 years old. Jack lost some of the fingers on his left hand; the thumb and forefinger were saved, but the rest were just stubs. Dad was out of town and couldn't be reached, so Mom was there alone with my brother when he woke up after surgery. She explained to him about his hand, and he asked her, "But they'll grow back, won't they Mom?" The hardest thing she ever had to do was to look him in the eye and calmly say, "No, son, they won't grow back." I know myself linked by chains of fire To every woman who has kept a hearth. In the resinous smoke I smell hut, castle, cave, Mansion and hovel, See in the shifting flame my mother and grandmothers out over the world - Elsa Gidlow Ginger ihnp4!uw-beaver!ssc-vax!ginger -- Ginger ihnp4!uw-beaver!ssc-vax!ginger