Today's Sunday Art, I wanted to try and depict the sentiment of Judge Aquilina's step into unchartered waters, opening up space for so many victims to break their silence and embrace their truth.
I was drawn to a water, or beach scene, and then I wondered.
One lady, embracing her new freedom and into magnificence, or two women?
How do you depict what I felt?
Perhaps the safety of standing up in places that were unfamiliar and unknown.
Empowered women, empower women!
We dare take a step when we see others in the unknown and thriving.
What I hadn't expected after the emotional feelings of her (Judge Aquilina) words was that the tides of emotion would change.
That the hope I had would die.
Hope that her words would fall from my mother.
The contrast between these two women was too big to reach a place of overlap and my hope fell through.
Hope in that someday.
Or maybe.
And, what if.
The sheer beauty and the hollow landscape bowed me over.
We embrace her kindness and then have to feel the space where others were speechless or worse said things that caused more pain.
I also thought, that the reason her words were so beautiful was that they are rare.
Which is again so sad.
How is it possible that we as humanity haven't learned what to say to victims of abuse?
How can we be so awkward, that kindness bends us down with emotion?
If only, victims were met with the compassion that Judge Aquilina showed, oh the road to healing would be so short.
Instead we are set adrift in the barren landscape of silence. For our truth is not welcome, understood, accepted, acknowledged, wanted...
We can only change the legacy of abuse, the bad legacy of silence, by doing something different.
It is one thing for the victims to be brave and speak their silence, it is a totally other thing for those who are suppose to listen, how they respond.
We were offered a sea of grace, a welcomed soul, a caring ear to hear, and words of wisdom in her response.
Not the sea of grace, where the church hurled our "sins" to be lost forever. But, a sea of grace that welcomes our truth to be exposed and the abusers to face justice.
Again, an example of justice that leans towards victims.
I will continue to work on this piece of art to show the magnificence in being free empowered by our truth - of how one person can be the change we were waiting for.
I wondered about adding words to the beach, the solid ground we sometimes cling to, the comfort in the staying on the safe side of fear. Or perhaps words cheering on those who dare live their truth out loud.
