NA:DI:A - She of the Shadows

She keeps a keen eye
on the need for change.

She is enduring.

She endures dirt,
betrayal, wounds,
and loneliness.
She walks the underworld
and returns enriched.
She follows the guidance
of the Wild Mother.

She sees and hears across vast distances.
She sees with the eyes of others.
She can shift gender, become the
animal,
and outwit the predator’s deceit.

She is the black soil,
the hard, dark roots,
and all that once lived –
broken down into fragrant humus.
Fertile earth where seeds are laid,
prepared, and hatched.

The Scarecrow Woman nourishes ideas into reality.

She is the Woman of the Dark.

If she spots you
at the entrance to the underworld,
she will lead you to the moat.

But the water in the moat is poisoned –
meant only for the dead.

She offers you a choice.
She plants doubt in your mind,
balancing on the edge
of your awareness.

Now is the time to bind your wounds,
inflicted by poor bargains,
to walk hungry and trust
that nature will feed you.

To endure being endlessly misunderstood.

To be torn again and again
from love.
To wait and endure
with courage.
To continue even when all
seems lost.

To relive childhood,
girlhood, and the time
as a grown woman –
until you are reunited
with the Wild Woman.

Until you find her cave,
crawl inside, and meet It.

The Scarecrow Woman
will point you in the right direction.
And that way is down.

Down into your own work.
Down into your inner world.
Down the tunnel to the cave.

You will feel her breath.

Will you surrender to the underworld?
Will you drink from the poisoned moat?
Will you be reborn?
Will you trust that nature will feed you?