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March 12th, 2015

3/12/2015

5 Comments

 
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Red Tents and The New Vernacular

With all the increased awareness of the red tent movement, I’m curious about the new verbiage that comes up in conversation around it.

·         We’ve got the expression “red tent” – which many women are somewhat familiar with but most aren’t. 

·         Growing up in N.Y., we’d never call a girl or woman “sister” unless she really was. 

·         We’d never say, “I’m on my moon” instead of “period.” 

Come to think of it, probably women from most other states have shared the same vernacular.  Exceptions to this would have to be California, ‘fur sure.’  This new jargon comes from more of a New Age vocabulary.  Unpacking it can be very inspiring:  we’re to look at other women as being related, connected – as in having a sister.  Being “on our moons” instills the awareness that our periods are related to the moon and its cycles.  In fact, “cyclical” is a word that is being spoken quite frequently these days, too.  It is a call again for women to tap into their cyclical waxing and waning natures and reclaim the Divine Feminine.  Besides, the word “period” is so dissinteresting.  And final.

As physically challenging as it is to articulate the word “cyclical,” it is in another vein, psychologically uncomfortable for me to say “sister” when talking about or addressing a female friend.  What is my blockage?  I know that the word has an upright meaning and one that I’d like to convey.  The image and feeling I get when I think of the word is of a naive or insincere hippie.  Where does my blockage come from?   Is it because my consciousness is so mired in the old social paradigm, reflecting the repression of the divine feminine?   Is it also because this same consciousness has taught me to feel separate from other women and not like they are my sisters?  I also feel a little funny speaking to others about the “divine feminine.”  Why should it feel like such a strange concept?  Is it because God has been a “he” for millennia?  Would I be risking scorn from people by suggesting female energy is equally as sacred?  After all, women have been second-class citizens for thousands of years.  How can we be associated with that which is hallowed?

In our modern, industrialized, Western culture, we are so far removed from each other, insular in our urban, nuclear families.  We have been so distanced from sisterhood and the lifeblood of womanhood. Feeling alone, our female essences are further stripped when we are taught to ignore our periods and get on with our day-to-day lives. 

Me and some sistas (a few million women) are on a mission to bring the divine feminine back.  We are starting to honor what it is to be a woman instead of trying to be a better man.  I believe the red tent movement is a big part of this. I’d be curious to hear how it is showing up in your lives. 

.

5 Comments
Laura Parenteau link
3/17/2015 10:01:15 am

I think your awkwardness with calling other females “sister” is quite natural for the times we in. Instead of banding together, we have been trained today to be in competition with other women. Great for the industries of beauty products, costly clothes and diet aids etc. Maybe we intrinsically miss the times of banning together to get the job done and that is why we are so drawn to the idea of the Red Tent. As for using the term the divine feminine—I don’t know about you, sister, but that might even be dangerous here in the Bible belt. Oddly, or luckily we (or she, my sister) has not gotten too much negativity here regarding the two historical fiction books she has written that are based on unknown women of the Bible. They are not only written from a feminine perspective with interesting twists in the stories, but bring up the history of the feminine divine. The first one won ForeWord Reviews’ Book of the Year for historical fiction and the second has just been released and is getting rave reviews. One reviewer even mentioned that “fans of The Red Tent by Anita Diamant will love this book.” I think anyone who is interested in this topic would love them—she did her homework and is a fabulous writer! If interested, the titles are NOAH’S WIFE and ANGELS AT THE GATE by T.K. Thorne. She also includes very interesting author’s notes which are in the books and her website. TKThorne.com. Hope you don’t mind me “plugging them.”

Reply
Susan Landa link
3/18/2015 03:53:20 am

Thanks for your comments, Laura! Yes, I had a feeling it wouldn't go over very well in the Bible Belt. :) The books sound wonderful. I will definitely check them out!

Reply
Laura Parenteau link
3/18/2015 11:29:42 am

Awesome. Would love hear what you think after you read them. BTW, their are excerpts on her website too.

Susan link
4/4/2015 05:11:22 am

Laura - I just posted the list of teachers from the tele-summit. http://www.moondays.com/blog/deanna-lams-red-tent-tele-summit

Reply
Laura link
4/4/2015 02:26:59 pm

Thanks for thinking of me Susan!

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    I have a burning desire to empower women.  I hope that my mission resonates with you  and you join me on this journey.

    Susan Landa

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