Last week, my wife and I were blessed by a visitation of the Goddess in physical form.
Ravyn had been ill for a long time. In addition to intractable body pain which may or may not be caused by auto immune illnesses or spinal compressions, she had undergone questionable dental work which left her mouth throbbing from an incompletely-removed root fragment. This had persisted for over a year, until she changed her insurance and was referred to a compassionate and competent female dentist in a different practice.
We were in that office Monday afternoon, with Ravyn in the chair and me sitting on a stool nearby, in charge of her handicap scooter. (Throughout our nearly 34 years of marriage we have always accompanied each other to our medical appointments. In addition to the emotional support, it makes it easier to remember later what the doctor told us. We also help each other to answer the doctor's questions, if the other one can't quite remember the right words to use.) We were both praying silently to Brigid, asking that something right would finally be done for Ravyn and that past medical mistakes might not be repeated.
We had already met the mature woman who owns the practice, and her excellent female assistant. But this time we also met an eager young girl in dental school who was there to observe. Ravyn complimented the beautiful cross the girl was wearing, and she responded enthusiastically. My wife—a Priestess of the Goddess—told me later that both the girl's cross and her faith filled her with happiness.
As the pain killer was given time to work, the doctor showed us her new fitness-tracker watch that her sons had given her for her birthday. Since she looks trim and healthy and works actively all the time, I asked her if that was something she had wanted. She immediately exclaimed, "No! But I'm surrounded by males, and they're obsessed with technology!" We laughed. It was a wonderfully relaxing moment.
After a longer time than an assembly-line dentist would ever have waited, the doctor was assured that the pain med had done its job and Ravyn would feel nothing while the work was done. As the doctor asked the dental student about her boyfriend and their plans for the weekend, all three ladies—the maiden, the married technician and the mature pro—arranged themselves solicitously around Ravyn's chair, each ready to offer her own special brand of caring, support and expertise. Even this man could see the Triple Goddess at work. I felt a wash of peace and confidence. Nothing bad would happen to Ravyn this time; everything was in the best of hands.
Afterwards, Ravyn told me that she felt an aura of love in the room. This was no illusion based on false hope; the procedure went quickly and painlessly. The doctor's skill was awesome.
For the first time, it finally penetrated my slow male mind that the Crone is not a half-crazy old hag with arthritis! She is the strong, knowledgeable Wise Woman—the experienced, sure-handed Physician whom you want to take charge and have in your corner when you're in trouble! As an individual, she may or may not be a mother; her invaluable worth is in her expert ministrations.
The Mother Herself embodies patience and compassion—mature enough to understand commitment and the best way to care for Her children. She is balanced between her future development as a sorceress par excellence and her former, relatively carefree existence as a young woman in the first excitement of adulthood.
And my man-mind also saw that what makes a Maiden has nothing to do with patriarchal judgments about good girls or bad girls. She may or may not be exploring her sexuality; that's her business. What makes her a maiden instead of a child is that she is taking her first steps into adulthood, feeling not only the thrill of blossoming maturity but also the realization that other people are in pain and need help.
I also witnessed—in that blink of time which held the revelation of timelessness—that the Goddess graciously manifests in the flesh through real women, regardless of whether they are aware of Her. She makes Herself known when they are most spontaneously themselves.
And now I have a suggestion for medical professionals of all specialties, whose patients are women: Whenever you can, arrange to have three ladies of varying ages there to support the procedure, if not to actually perform it.
It would ensure your place on the list of Best Local Doctors, though your clients might never understand why.
Blessed Be.