The Grass is Purple

I have, so it seems…created a discussion which led to a whole bunch of women being angry, and incredibly spiteful…all because I am inviting women to join in an Artist’s Collective…and because at this moment in time, I don’t have every answer people would like to know. Apparently, in this situation, not having the answers is akin to being “up to no good”.

You can read the whole discouraging, demoralizing, negative and venomous discussion here:

(You may need to create an Artfire account to view it, but it’s free and doesn’t take long…)

Among the things I found most saddening, was that these women can’t see an opportunity when it’s offered to them.

It’s quite possible that they would look at the opportunity and feel it not a good opportunity for them-that would be totally fine! But to try to completely discredit my concept, and “warn” others of falling into a “trap”, is a bit much considering who they are speaking of.  They obviously don’t understand the concept of co-operative effort! It is disheartening to, without any bad intentionns at all-quite the opposite in fact, be torn limb to limb and accused of being a liar.  AND then to be mocked for my parenting style, and treated like I was hypocitical for wishing for female unity, and then making a statement about my experience with American vs. Canadian artists. (Which was truly my honest observation!)

I originally had planned to write a lengthy piece detailing WHY they were missing out on a great idea, and defending my reputation, which is really very good. I AM an honest person, I wanted to shout-kids DO start Junior Kindergarten at 4 here in Canada, and Anthropologically, breastfeeding should be done until 6 or 8 years old!!! I wanted to defend myself, make amends, hug everyone and tell them their wounds are so obvious…

But instead, I’ve decided to take some of my own advice. I wrote something recently on a friend’s facebook wall, when a bunch of women were arguing with a man about the benefits of placentophagy. Personally, I don’t know if I would consume my placenta-unless I were hemorraghing, but I DO think women are wise to consider all of the choices…there certainly are benefits! They were going on and on with him, and how he was a “man” who didn’t understand, and trying to convince him of the validity of this option, (and other birth options that came up in convo.)

This is what I posted and, aside from the gender difference, the advice still rings true:

As Women, this is one of our biggest lessons.

Here we are as women-the bringers of life, the vessels of creative force-wasting our time and valuable energy discussing what WE KNOW that WE KNOW- Our Red Tent secrets with this Man. There are some men, who would be making us tea in our Red Tent, quite aware that mystical happenings are taking place, and happy to just support and let it be. But those men are rare-and valued-respected-LOVED- above all other men by those of us who KNOW.

BUT:…

We must learn that when a man is childish like this, we need to respond with compassion for his ignorance, and treat him the same way we would treat a 4 yr old who is absolutely convinced the grass is PURPLE. A sweet and loving pat on the head, and we let them believe it’s PURPLE until one day, quite on their own, they realize-discover, that is WAS GREEN, and always has been.

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So, I will only say this: I am proud of the openness with which I approach life and people. I have been through more hell than most could fathom. The experiences I have had caused me great harm-and I wanted to shut the world out, and for a time I was wary of everyone-suspicious and interested only in “catching” someone before I was caught. I choose to be open. I choose to love. I choose to raise my consciousness, because when I do these things, the GREATER consciousness is also raised.

This conversation has taught me a lot about myself, and I am thankful for that. I sure do have some growing to do.

 I am sad that I was taken so wrong-but I am hopeful that the right women-the bright women-the ones who still have hope, joy, passion and trust in tact-(because these are after all, the kinds of women I want to surround myself with!) will find me. Will hear word of it in the whisperings our alternative communities share-and will offer their creativity-their talent-their time, their wisdom and the “fire in their belly”, toward a collective project to make the world a more loving, more nurturing and more resiliant place. A center for it to grow from…an epicenter if you will.

I don’t know at this point what changes I will make to my project’s plan. I DID learn a couple valuable things in spite of the venom.;) And I’m not one to ignore my lessons, even if I don’t particularly enjoy the teachers the Universe chose to deliver them through.:) (lol) One of my biggest concerns, is Insurance. I would hate to have anything harmed-I would feel really badly about that, and even worse if I were not able to compensate the artist. It would be unspeakable to me to have to make that phone call…

I did speak to my insurance broker, and I believed her when she said everything could be covered. I will revisit this with her, and clarify that these items won’t belong to me-to be absolutely certain it would still be covered. I am also re-thinking my consignment percentages. Even though they are very competitive in my area, I want to be sure the women involved in this receive the benefits of financial gain, as well as the benefits of my marketing experience and networking talents.;) Money is good!

I am meditating on exactly what I need to do….and when I am re-organized, I’ll contact all of you who have expressed interest.

For now, I’m going to work on releasing this disheartened feeling, and try to let go of the shock of being treated this way by other women-I need to remove the frustration I feel at being so completely misjudged, and redirect this energy into motivation.

You’d think I’d know by now that not all (or even most) women are ready for me.

ROFL!