Friday, March 11, 2011

In These Dark Days


Once again, my days and nights are occupied battling against the elements of Nature. We had torrential rain on Sunday and Monday that flooded my hay storage and Siete’s stall, among other places in our house and garage. I am tired of blogging about the weather, but it is my constant nemesis these last three months. Last night and this morning, we’re getting a few more inches of rain and everything that flooded earlier in the week is flooding again.

The horses have been taking it very well. Siete spent one night sharing a stall with her mother before I was able to dump enough wood pellets into hers to soak up most of the water. It still bubbles up when she steps in the front, but there’s a dry area in the back where she can stand. After a night with mom, she opted for coming back to her own space. Last night, I listened to the wind and rain fiercely pounding and I feared for the worst this morning. Miraculously, she’s still got this dry spot where I can feed her and she can keep her feet from getting wet, but now I have to figure out how to get her out and into Silk’s stall again. The front corral is a lake and it is continuing to pour down. It continues to challenge my coping skills.

Each time I’ve come back into the house to take a break over the last few days, I’ve been presented with unexpected examples of a disturbing topic. First, my daughter came home from high school eager to talk to me about the problem of dating violence. She isn’t involved, thank heavens, in this horrible situation, but apparently some young women in her school are. They have had the courage to come forward to talk about it, and my daughter applauded their bravery. Then, I received an email from a friend with a news story about an 11-year old girl in Texas who was gang raped by 18 young men, including high school star athletes. Yesterday, another friend sent me a link to a presentation at one of the TEDx conferences by Chameli Ardagh called “The Fierce Face of the Feminine”. It’s a very compelling argument about how women must use their power to protect the children of the world. She points out that each day all over the world, there are more and more children whose lives are in danger and who are afraid to go to sleep at night.

As you know, I try to stay away from discussing politics and events of upheaval in the world. You also probably have noticed, through the years of owning Silk and Siete, I have come to appreciate the temperament and characteristics of my mares and other female creatures and learned a lot about the power of the feminine. And coincidentally, Wednesday was International Women's Day. So, I feel a strong need this week, as Mother Nature continues to rage around me, to urge women to take hold of their power and teach their daughters how to use it to make the world a safer place for our children. It might appear that as mere individuals, we are not able to stop the horrors of acts of violence and war. Yet every day, in how we relate to what goes on right here around us, there are opportunities for every woman to find her own power and take a stand against what we know in our hearts is not good for us or our children. From one drop of consciousness and action, there can be an enormous ripple.

Here’s the link to Chameli Ardagh’s talk: “The Fierce Face of the Feminine”

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good thought, well-put - thank you.

You've certainly had a series of bad weather events where you live - stay as dry as you can and hope with the rest of us that spring - real spring with sunshine and flowers - comes soon.

Calm, Forward, Straight said...

Powerful post!

I'm holding down the fort for strong women here in my little corner of the world - infested as it is by gender inequality. The stories I could tell ;)

I wonder if we can ever get to the point where we are humans first. Not gender, not race, not
belief system...

Wholeheartedly wishing for an extended period of calm peaceful weather to come your way. If anyone deserves it... :)

Lori Skoog said...

Victoria...If this weather ever gets better, how about putting a thick layer of stonedust in your stalls and then covering that with some mats (then your pellets). How does the water get into the barn? Your place has taken such a beating this year. The weather has been so extreme everywhere.
As for the other topic...people go on their merry way and so many don't even think about the problems that exist. Help is needed in so many ways.

Spartacus Jones said...

Dark days, indeed.
It seems not a day goes by without some new horrific revelation demonstrating the depths of depravity to which human beings can sink.
(No wonder I prefer the company of horses.)

I believe men and women alike must stand up against the evil in the world, to speak out for what's right, to protect the innocent, and to hold the guilty accountable.

Whether we rise or fall, we're in it together.

sj

Grey Horse Matters said...

We've certainly got to stand together and teach our children how to stand up for themselves. I'm proud of your daughter, I can't believe this is happening in schools around here.

Sorry to hear about your stall woes. The warmer weather is on the way though, keep the faith. This morning the water was over some roads I had to travel but by this afternoon with the sun shining they had receded. Fingers and toes crossed for a few clear days around here.

Deejbrown said...

Your message about safety for girls and the mothers who protect them are not limited to species. It seems the world is getting more violent, not less, unless we have too much access to international horrors and now are aware when a a bus falls off a bridge in Ireland or a hurricane explodes in Japan.
Your girls, all of them, are safe during your watch. And the Universe is looking out for you too....

detroit dog said...

A very strong post, Victoria. Dark days indeed, in so many ways.

And wet days, too. Here in the Detroit area, our backyard has been a swamp for the longest time. So much rain (for two straight days nonstop *before* it became 4 inches of snow). I think our weather moves over to you about 24 hours later.

I'm hoping some dry sunny days come your way, along with a little peace and some time off from floods. In the meantime, breathe....

Callie said...

Sorry to hear that you're having such trouble with the weather....Ours is warm and then cold....And just when things were drying up a bit, it rained last night..ugh! Oh, I would not read such an article.....it's unfortunate and happens all too often all over the world, but why send it to friend, sorry, but it's almost like gauking at an accident on the freeway....I just couldn't do it.........Anyway, hope things dry up for you soon and I know your girls help to keep things grounded as do mine.........

Deborah Carr said...

I think our animals can teach us so much...I loved the talk and coincidentally, read something similar just recently. I've been realizing lately that my voice has been stifled for exactly the reasons she mentions in her talk. But, in recent months, I've been discovering my voice matters. And has a power and purpose of its own. Thanks so much for the link, Victoria.

I'm glad your flooding has subsided...we've had so much snow this winter, but I was always grateful that it wasn't water. I hope all is well with you and 'the girls'.