One of the most astounding facts about the miracle of a woman’s body is that we, women, are born with all of our eggs within us…
This means that when your Grandmother was born, she carried within her the egg that became your Mother. When your Mom was born, the egg from which You grew — already lived within her. On the day of Your birth, the children that you brought forth (if you did in this life) were already nestled in your womb. And if you have a daughter, her future children are living-potentials in her womb… Stop for a moment and think about this…
Like the Russian nesting doll, Matryoshka, we too are nestled within our mother’s body since her birth. Similarly, all generations of human life on Earth are so encapsulated within the women that will one day give birth to them. The chain of generation is truly unbroken, and we are each a living link in that chain.
In indigenous cultures – it is traditional to feed the ancestors. When honoring those who crossed over, many cultures will have the deceased cooked-for by their loving family members. The dead’s favorite meal is displayed on the altar and is offered as a gift for their spirit to enjoy. Considering that we are indeed part of our mother’s body ever since her birth, it seems that without acknowledging it — we also feed future generations when we feed our children. Your Grandmother actually nourished You when she fed her daughter, your future Mom. And you are feeding unborn children, who reside in your daughter’s womb, each time you feed her. Our inter-connectedness becomes palpable when you think of it in this way. No longer an abstract spiritual concept, our oneness is a physiological fact.
While men produce new sperm daily, women are born with all their eggs. Between one and two million of them, in fact. Only a fraction of these will be fertilized. And even fewer will be carried through a pregnancy to be born as new human beings. More than a million eggs will be shed by your womb over the years, as menstrual flow. In a way this is humanity in its potential form – passing through you…
How would you honor this flow? How would you acknowledge the endless potential that has not come to fruition? Just remembering that the substance of your Menstrual Flow is sheer potentiality – would be a great place to start. Instead of throwing your menstrual pads into the trash, contemplate the fact that this is life in its raw form. This living tissue, shed by your womb, is the building block of humanity. How far must we have drifted, as a culture, to have closed our eyes and hearts to this fact… To have come to label this life-giving substance ‘gross’, to have been taught to hide it, and to have been compelled to throw it away as waste…
Lets return to the model of feeding instead of that of trashing. When we feed a child, lets remember that we are also feeding future generations. When you feed your own body, remember that a vast amount of Human Potential resides in your womb, weather you decide to materialize it in the form of a new human life, or use its potency to feed your creativity in the world. Next time you are about to dispose of a pad stained with your menstrual flow, take a moment to contemplate its origins. Perhaps you could find a better place to rest it than the trash can? Perhaps you can soak it in water and feed the Earth with it, or pour it on your favorite house-plant to give it a boost of life. If the thought grosses you out, stop to think why? Trace the thought to its origins… When did you first learn about menstrual blood, and who told you it was gross? Once you discover the answer — return the thought to its originator (be it your mother, your father, an ad, a line in a movie, or whatever else). Then contemplate the actual substance of your menstrual blood, and ask yourself if it is not about time you made up your own mind?
____________________________________
© 2013-2016 DeAnna L’am, All Rights Reserved
