when the goddess speaks we need to listen...

when the goddesses speak in great numbers we have no choice but to listen.

Last evening I was included to be among a group of goddesses gathered to send off a beloved friend to her home that is about to be too far away for an easy coffee together. We were asked to dress in fluid feminine-wear, to write a poem or create an offering of entertainment. We did as requested. Why wouldn't we want to participate in this celebration? We laughed, we tried not to cry, we chanted, sang, drummed and ate delicious food.

Our goddess hostess created a simple and simply elegant environment. There were just the right amount of chairs consciously placed for conversations of two. Larger groups gathered around a decorated picnic table. The drinks were under a winged tent out in the garden. The margaritas weren't too sweet, and the champagne was chilled. The flower beds were in bloom and pungent. The mosquitos partied elsewhere. And the moon came in full.

This gathering in this ambiance was just right for the goddesses to stand side by side. We passed a lite candle from one to the next, lighting the way around the circle. We gave our friend and the world at large a showering of love.
We dedicated ourselves to standing as pillars of peace and positve emanations and focus. And no matter where we are, we will remain connected as goddeses of the world determinded to speak our truth and to be heard..... until we meet again.

Jill Butler
www.jillbutler.com
author/ Illustrator
Create the Space You Deserve
plus three illustrated France travel guides

row, row, row your boat.....look back to go forward....

Growing up in Michigan we had the land of lakes all around us and in our backyard lake a wooden tank of a row boat. It was huge, dark grey- green and deep enough to hold my brother and me, our equipment for fishing, swimming, and the dog that travelled the lake with us. Though I was the younger, I did most of the rowing, slave sister that I was. I got lots of practice rowing backwards to go forward. The rewards were landing on the island in the middle of our kingdom, unwrapping our now soaked peanut butter and mayo sandwiches, taking yet another swim and exploring our island.

Going backwards to go forward.....a curious notion and a concept worth considering. Renovating a house requires a looking back inorder to go forward. What came before gets considered inorder to appreciate and understand the materials and its’ structure. I know little of this simple cottage and it's history. What we did learn in ripping out the kitchen was about insulation. We found an impressive amount of 1923-1924 newspapers stuffed into the walls.. No wonder the kitchen was cold. I saved some of these crumbling and now sepia colored newspapers as recorded history and noted the August 28, 1923 New Haven Evening Register ad run by The Lomas & Nettleton Co. of New Haven offering first time morgage loans at rates of 6% - 6.5% in amounts from $500 -$25,000. What could you buy today for $25,000, let alone $500?

www.jillbutler.com
Author/Illustrator Create the Space You Deserve
JillsBirds'nWords, a registered trademark