I’ve always wondered what Demeter would say to Persephone when Persephone emerged from the Underworld. A Mother’s Wisdom was born from that thought on the Spring Equinox while I was staring out of my office window wishing I was outside enjoying the beautiful day. To me, in the Underworld, Persephone would have encountered her shadow self to deal with healing her wounds freely in a way that she could not in the open light. While the myth has many problematic themes (kidnapping, non-consent, lack of choice), I often viewed it as a metaphor for how women’s priorities are constantly split, torn apart, and how we are trying to balance multiple lives. The darkness fascinates me because in the darkness there is beauty. It is in that darkness we often find the truth.

Rest my girl.

Your soul is beaten,

Bruised,

Tired.

You are home,

You are loved,

You are light.

The hard work is now done

and your shadow needs rest.

Let it rest for a season.

Now is the time of light

Before you descend

To begin once more.

Celebrate.

Rejoice.

Love.

Nurture the light

As you heal the shadow.

Balance

Requires strength.

Strength requires rest.

Rest requires vulnerability.

Vulnerability requires

Love.