One of the writing exercises Deena assigned was to draw 3 of our cards and, in the order we pulled them, tell their story. These are the cards I drew at random (sorry for the quality - they're photos from my phone):
Here is the story that came to me:
Once there was an old woman.
Her face was lined, her eyes deep and wise. The woman was much beloved by her people and
wore a necklace of turquoise and coral, given to her by the community as a
token and sign of her position and regard.
Even so, she lived a simple life, spending her days caring for the
grandbabies and honoring the gods and ancestors with offerings of cinnamon,
cornmeal and flowers. An outsider would
only see her status by observing the numbers of people who visited her, seeking
her advice and guidance. She fed all who
came to her home, but as time passed the younger generation began assuming much
of the work that she had always done herself.
They cleaned her house, supplied her larder, washed her clothing and
kept her supplied with the plant medicines and other items she needed. At
first, she resisted allowing them to perform these services, but soon enough
she recognized that she benefited from more rest. And, besides, it was an honor for the children
to serve, and she needed to give them that opportunity. But the grandchildren she continued to care
for with her strong and tender hands.
One night,
the old woman had a dream. She found
herself in an underground cavern full of large crystals. Quartz grew in all directions, and it was beautiful. On the floor of this cave an earth goddess
reposed; she appeared to be sleeping.
The old woman wore a strange red garment and was reaching out to assist
someone trying to climb up from below her.
A great blue butterfly appeared, and the old woman knew that it was a
projection of her own soul. She knew she
should follow it, but she wanted to harvest some crustal to take with her. And she had to help her fellow traveler. The
butterfly was ascending, and she had to decide:
follow, or stay for the crystal, or help the other.
When she
woke up, the old woman called her community together. she told them that she had dreamed a big
dream. Even before the dream came, she
had been receiving messages about the future.
There were decisions to be made, and soon. A dark time was at hand.
The old
woman foretold of a time when the people would rush and hurry, moving so
quickly and frantically through their lives that they appeared to her like dogs
racing through the woods or forced to jump through hoops of fire. There would be men who would build objects
and structures both beautiful in a strange way and also deadly to the body and
the soul. The ancestors would loom as
large as always, but the people would ignore them and they would seem frozen in
place, unimportant.
“This time
will come,” said the old woman, after recounting her dream. “What shall we do?”
Some said
they should attempt to rouse the sleeping earth goddess. Some said they must bury crystals back in the
earth as offerings. Some said they must
see if they must ensure that the ancestors not be forgotten. Others refused to believe that they could
fall so far from their practices and way of life.
The old
woman said, “I myself must pay attention and follow the blue butterfly of my
soul. If I do not, if I lose sight of
it, then for me, all is truly lost.”
Then, she counseled those who felt so moved to make offerings, sing and
dance to the earth goddess, to wake her up.
Others should bury crystals or be sure to offer helping hands to their
companions. Everyone should remember the
ancestors. But the must all act
deliberately, and not with an urgency that welled up out of fear.
“Time is a
mystery,” she said. “But if we cannot
let it control us. Honor it. Respect it.
But do not allow it to dominate our lives. We must live with and in all the worlds –
dark, light, underworld, spirit world, middle earth – all of them.”
“And what
of this pollution of our way of life that is coming? Must it come?” they asked.
“I only see
what the dream shows,” she replied.
“Whatever comes, we must keep together, remember the ancestors and
spirits, and care for the children.”
