The Matriarchs

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There is this scene in "I heart Huckabees" in which Jason Schwartzman is supposed to imagine people from his life sitting in a tree (in the movie it goes terribly wrong)...

In times of stress or fear, I conjure some of the smartest, strongest ladies I know sitting in a tree offering support and wisdom to me. I know it's a bit bizarre but the tree symbol is so powerful and reminds me that I am deeply rooted. I've already introduced you to one of my tree mavens, Ina May.

Here is another one: Dr. Christine Northup. She is deeply committed to bringing consciousness of mind/ body connection into our everyday lives. Her holistic wisdom eschews preventive health through an ideal of comprehensive wellness rather than the typical "knee-jerk reaction" medicine of much of our health care system today.

This is her "daily inspiration" from July 21st: "Giving birth is a time of great opportunity for women to get in touch with their true power. We need to emerge from our labor beds with a renewed sense of strength and awareness that our bodies have just participated in a magnificent act of creation."

She will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming conference

"Women & Courage: Expressing Women's Wisdom in the 21st Century" September 12-14 at the Omega Institute.

* This drawing/photos is from a marvelous project by the artist Yeondoo Jung. He translates children's drawings into photographs.