"When women reassert their relationship with the wildish nature, they are gifted with a permanent and internal watcher, a knower, a visionary, an oracle, an inspiratrice, an intuitive, a maker, a creator, an inventor, and a listener who guide, suggest and urge vibrant life in the inner and outer life." -Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes
When the awesome + talented Danielle Daniel offered her Painted Paper Doll class I immediately knew that I had to take it; it simply spoke to my soul. It wasn't because it would help my art or creativity or any of that...it simply called out to my soul and I listened. It was a little intimidating to think of venturing into papier mache...I had never done it before and it's totally out of my realm of experience. I had seen her impossibly sweet + precious little dolls and swooned over them but thought...impossible!!! I can't do that! But I signed up anyway. Okay...so here's the story of what happened. Her class started last Monday and just the day before I had picked up Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes audio tape of The Red Shoes from the library. As I sat to make my doll at my studio table...I listened to Dr. Estes talk about recovery of the soul and a "life made by hand". It seemed quite extraordinary but totally normal all at once...but everything she was talking about completely and utterly echoed what I was doing with my doll. I felt caught in that magical space of synchronicity where everything feels free and easy and flows from a place that is vast and untouchable. A space that is all at once scared yet accessible to us all once we let go and trust our intuition; our wiser all knowing self that speaks to us in myriad ways both large and small. I was riding this huge wave of absolute joy...making my paper doll and knowing that the Universe was affirming me; it felt so good!!
Then...because there are stage to making the doll with allowing the glue to dry etc...I had a whole story planned out for this girl. But when I woke up on October 10...I heard that Malala Yousafzai had won the Nobel!!! Okay...after I cried my eyes out...my doll took on a life of her own...meet Girl Rising. Totally inspired by girls all over the world who are denied their basic rights (to food,medicine, education) and sometimes...their very lives (gendercide). These children are sold into prostitution, child labor or child marriage and their very lives are disposable. Entire childhoods are eradicated and souls are destroyed all because the overculture deems that girls are not equal to boys.How many of these children are lost...we will never know. Yet still...out of all this muck and violence...there are girls who rise. Girls who defeat the odds and follow their hearts...who speak up and remain true to themselves and their calling. There are girls who say "NO!!! I will not be silenced and reduced"... they rise.
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