Create, Create, Create
The old woman taught her grandchildren how to mold the clay into vessels that would teach them about life, serving the children in many ways. The lessons were many, and so she spoke slowly.
“You children may remember that we ask permission from the Earth Mother to remove this clay from the riverbank and give it a new home and a new purpose. Do you know why we did that?”
No answer came from the wide-eyed children at the Old One’s side, so she continued.
“This rich yellow clay has a life, children. It is a living thing, and with the clay’s permission, it will bend to your hands. The pots or bowls you make will have a life of their own, and each one will have a purpose of serving in beauty. The clay is flexible when it is wet, brittle when it is too dry.
“The Maker of All Life knows that humans are like that clay. When we become self-serving, we grow dry and brittle, because we are removed from the river – the Giver of Life. But when we use our creativity to serve others, our bodies and mind become flexible again. The waters of life return to us through our perspiration and tears. The path of service we follow is rich and fulfilling because we have become round and whole. Then, like these clay pots, the Maker fills us with spirit until we overflow. That extra, overflowing spirit is our creativity – a gift from The Great Mystery. We learn that through sharing our talents and our gifts, they multiply and grow.”
Jamie Sams, Earth Medicine: Ancestors’ Ways of Harmony for Many Moons
Art by Holly Sierra
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