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narrative writing & arts

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CREATING A NEW MYTH

During 2009, I began editing my blog writing from the previous two years. My focus was on further development of a 'feminine myth' which I began during graduate school at New York University. The 'feminine myth' was a reaction to the patriarchal monomyth as well as a result of a broadening of my framework for meaning. The three working categories of this paradigm are mythology of planet, mythology of other, mythology of self. In other words, this feminine framework suggests that being in relationship with planet, other people and self provides a meaningful framework for living. This period of 2009 also coincided with my earliest work in the use of visual arts within my counseling practice. The experience of my work and my clients has contributed greatly to my understanding and development of this paradigm.

The mythological roots of the phoenix may be found in its Egyptian counterpart, the Bennu, a crane-like bird believed to be the soul of the sun-god Ra. Egyptian myth says that the Bennu burst into being from the heart of Osiris, god of life, death and fertility. This explains its association with the transformation of the self.