My Two Flying Women and One from the Sea

What does it mean to you, to be "in your element"?

Sometimes a bluebird, a woodpecker, or even a squirrel will sit atop a garden post and I think, there really is a little magic in a totem pole. I’d like to share with you several magical women I’ve collected. This one below was a gift from my cousin.

The Gatherer!

Her eyelashes show how fast she’s flying into the wind. “You, too, can do this,” she says, “no matter how many spirits you have gathered along the way.”

Once a friend asked if I would trade my collage of women writers for her splendid flying woman. Of course!

Her first outing under the laurels.

I think she might be from Bali. Her eyes are wide open, she’s pointing straight ahead and her lips are bright red, calmly set with self-knowledge. I like her bracelets and necklace most of all. She knows how to wear jewelry.

Another friend surprised me with the gift of an ageless, cast-iron mermaid. She’s small, filling my open hand. Her element, the sea, is just as strong as she is. It supports her and she’s content.

I think she is combing her hair, not flirting.

Oddly enough, to me there’s nothing odd about these three strong women “living” in the air or in the ocean. There’s harmony between themselves and their environment. They’re at home.

Being “in your element” can mean that your desk is well arranged with everything at hand, and the garden outside your window is taking care of itself for a while. You can easily write, draw, read, sew, or meditate, or whatever you’re made for.

This morning I wanted to hear another woman’s words about the places we create for ourselves. Guess who stepped up? Gloria Steinem! “Don’t think about making women fit the world,” she said, “think about making the world fit women.”

“Gloria,” I replied, “could it finally be time to think about making the world fit people?”

Photos of the two flying women and the mermaid are by Deda Edney, with great thanks to the women who gave them to me!

Gloria Steinem quote