BodySoul Rhythms®

Lisa, what a beautiful tribute to a woman who re-mothered so many of us into a more soulful, authentic beingness. I , too, came to her in the midst of being possessed by a demon lover, and she held me through that until her illness took her out of commission. She was a fiercely nurturing therapist, a soul-mother, a mentor in so many things (psychotherapy, spirituality, life, love, and dying), and eventually a friend. I would not be the woman I am today without Virginia in my life. And, indeed, she continues to visit my dreams, as she has for about 20 years. I don't FEEL her absence. She is firmly ensconced in my psyche, and no doubt, we will meet again in some unknown time and place.

The poet Wislawa Szymborska was born in 1923, almost a hundred years ago. She was a sparkling, sharp and humorous poet. Today I came upon her poem about Lot’s wife and it really touched me how she gave her a voice and created a woman in whom we can recognize ourselves. Lot’s wife They say I looked back out of curiosity. But I could have had other reasons. I looked back mourning my silver bowl. Carelessly, while tying my sandal strap. So I wouldn’t have to keep staring at the righteous nape of my husband Lot’s neck. From the sudden conviction that if I dropped dead he wouldn’t so much as hesitate. From the disobedience of the meek. Checking for pursuers. Struck by the silence, hoping God had changed his mind. Our two daughters were already vanishing over the hilltop. I felt age within me. Distance. The futility of wandering. Torpor. I looked back setting my bundle down. I looked back not knowing where to set my foot. Serpents appeared on my path, spiders, field mice, baby vultures. They were neither good nor evil now, every living thing was simply creeping or hopping along in the mass panic. I looked back in desolation. In shame because we had stolen away. Wanting to cry out, to go home. Or only when a sudden gust of wind unbound my hair and lifted my robe. It seemed to me that they were watching from the walls of Sodom and bursting into thunderous laughter again and again. I looked back in anger. To savor their terrible fate. I looked back involuntarily. It was only a rock that turned underfoot, growling at me. It was a sudden crack that stopped me in my tracks. A hamster on its hind paws tottered on the edge. It was when we both glanced back. No, no. I ran on, I crept, I flew upward until darkness fell from the heavens and with it scorching gravel and dead birds. I couldn’t breathe and spun around and around. Anyone who saw me must have thought I was dancing. It’s not inconceivable that my eyes were open. It’s possible I fell facing the city.