Crones in my Life - April 10, 2011

Reflecting on roots. Born and raised in Canada on the prairies and west coast, I've now lived in California since age 28. As I approach retirement from formal work in October, I'm planning a trip through the western provinces to connect to the land and people of my homeland. I'm reaching out to family who I've not seen in decades and am curious as to how that will play out. There are four living aunts who I am interested in seeing as I more and more appreciate the role of the crone in keeping the wisdom and sharing with the youngers and I still feel that I'm one of those. I've recently been reading about two particularly wonderful and inspiring elder women and it just occurred to me that they are both Canadian - Marion Woodman and Joan Erickson.

Marion quotes Shakespeare, King Lear:

An aged man is but a paltry thing,

A tattered coat upon a stick, unless

Soul clap its hands and sing, and louder sing

For every tatter in its mortal dress.

This underscores the need to sing, both literally and figuratively. Having been working almost my whole life, at least since age 6, I'm finally realizing that having missed a lot of play time, there's no time like now. It seems a worthy goal, to play with color, learn to sing, explore, all for no other purpose than the doing of it and expressing soul's imperative.