Further thoughts on Artemis

I've been thinking a lot about Artemis today, after my reading on her yesterday. One aspect of her archetype that I think will be most valuable for me personally is the ideal of the lithe, athletic woman. I have the image of her bounding through the forest with her animals, being fully in her body. I have spent too much of my life with the archetype of Athena, dominated too much by the intellect, fully sprung from the mind of the father. I was raised by a single father, in a home and community dominated by masculine energy, so the archetype of Athena has always been a very safe and comfortable place for me. Over the last few years, I've had the privilege and opportunity to begin to explore the Aphroditic side of my nature, and, more recently, I have come under the influence of the archetype of the Mother. This has been wonderful, of course, but I also look forward to welcoming Artemis into my life-I've been looking for ways to be more in balance between body and mind.

Artemis is fully in her body. She enjoys her body, the athleticism of it. Thinking of her brings up a memory for me. I think I was about 9 years old (coincidentally, the age that Artemis prefers her young tomboy companions to be). I went on a hike with my dad and brother. As a kid, I was tall and lanky, all arms and legs. I can remember bounding up the mountain like a gazelle, calling back to my dad to hurry up. I remember the joy of being in my body, of having long legs that ate the trail as I climbed up and up. I've lost that sense of joy; I've spent too much time with mind, and not enough with body. I hope Artemis can help to bring me back into balance with my natural self.