A mother’s body is central to the experience of her child. It is the first home we know. Our mother’s womb, warm and dark, nourishes and holds our growing life.
Upon birth, we are often fed at the breast. Our mother’s milk, fatty and rich, grows our bodies until we are able to eat food.
If we are lucky, our mother’s body offers nurturing beyond gestation and infancy- a reassuring hand on our back, open arms to run into, a steady, rhythmic flow of breath to which we can attune.
If we aren’t so lucky, our mother’s body may be absent, indifferent, or in the habit of inflicting pain.
What was your relationship to your mother’s body?
And if you are a mother, what relationship do your children have to your body?
When I think of my mother’s body, my first memory is of her hands. She washed us with such care, sliding the soap between our fingers and up and down our arms. The way she bathed us was the embodiment of pure maternal love.
I was lucky.
My hope is that my children experience my body as a safe haven- a place that evokes comfort and warmth, and from which they expand can into their sovereign beingness.
WRITING MOTHERHOOD is a five-week course that explores our experience of motherhood. We will look at boundaries, bodies, emotions, and patterns. From this complex, beautiful and sometimes heartbreaking web, we will create art.
You needn’t be a writer, just a woman willing to pick up her pen ✍️
Join us?
Link here🌸
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