Inanna and Ereshkigal – practising the art of descent and return

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For the last two winters I have run a group for women called Wintering Together.  We gather in a friend’s house.  We light a candle.  We share.  There are stories and songs.  We settle into silence.  We acknowledge the slower tempo of the winter months.  For just one evening every fortnight, we allow ourselves to rest together.  Sometimes we just … Read More

On Women and Horses

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Since creating my one-woman show, Rhiannon Unbridled, I’ve been thinking a lot about women and horses.  Why is it that so many girls get wildly enthusiastic about ponies at a certain age?  What is the connection between the way we control horses with bridle and bit, and the way men have sometimes tried to control women’s voices – witness the … Read More

Grief and Gratitude – A Midwinter Ritual

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There’s an old story that has been holding me through the last months of this ragged year:  a story of the Cailleach, otherwise known as the Hag, the Ancient One, Old Woman Herself.  It’s a story I learnt from the exceptional storyteller Tracy Chipman, but it feels like one I’ve always known in my bones.  If you’d like to get … Read More

Singing the Great Mother

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Imagine climbing into the lap of a great mother, a soft, powerful, being who loves you through and through.  She cradles you in her arms.  She whispers to you that all is well, and in some unfathomable way, despite everything, you know this to be true. I don’t find this too hard to imagine because my mum was good at … Read More