My friend Kathy Escobar is part of a team who recently launched Voca Femina, an online 'zine dedicated to the voice of the ordinary woman.
The women of Voca Femina are especially keen on interaction. I highly recommend taking the time to check out some of the beautiful pieces there, and leave a comment, when you have time. The February edition contains my piece "Drifting Free".
"We know lots of powerful, creative women who have beautiful things to say, who may never land a book contract, fill an art gallery, or cut a record deal. Voca Femina is about giving us all a place to share, a place to grow."
The women of Voca Femina are especially keen on interaction. I highly recommend taking the time to check out some of the beautiful pieces there, and leave a comment, when you have time. The February edition contains my piece "Drifting Free".
I think this is a fantastic concept, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it unfolds.
ReplyDeleteIn case you hadn't made the connection...many of the photos in the zine (including the one with your piece) were taken by my wife (aka "The Wild One"). :)
thanks erin for spreading the love. i am really excited about what is ahead. keep sending stuff, you have so much beauty to share...see you tomorrow night! i can't wait to get on that plane.
ReplyDeletejeff - i LOVE shelby's pix, they are so amazing and really add so much beauty to voca femina. see you soon, too, we hope!
Jeff - I did know your wife had done the photos...or rather, I assumed she was your wife, since I don't know anyone else by that last name! Tho, I've never actually "met" her, I do love her art.
ReplyDeleteKathy - I should see you tonight; looking forward to it. Don't know what time I'll be there, have to escape from the family.
ReplyDeleteI popped in and took a look. I glanced at Kathy's piece. That photo! And what it represents!
ReplyDeleteAs I read I felt as if I was intruding. It reminded me of an incident at an Overeater's Anonymous meeting for men. A woman showed up and wanted to sit in. She was VERY offended that she was not welcome. She was going to make calls and write letters. But my point is that for it to be a safe place for the men to speak candidly about our struggles, it had to just be men. Your magazine is a totally different venue and completely different circumstances, but I didn't even want to comment. I kind of felt like I had accidentally wandered into the ladies rest room, not talking about function, but about propriety or something. Like, "Oh oh, I don't belong in here." I felt like a lurker. Yeah, these are all my own weird issues. I noticed that at least one mad had commented, but he knew Kathy or somebody.
What I really meant to say is that I think this is a FANTASTIC idea and that I look forward to reading there, and reading your piece in particular.
I still remember the piece I read online about tow or three years ago, I think it may have been by Magpie Girl, about how even in the leadership of the emerging church, at emerging and missional conferences, etc., it was assumed that women were going to deal with the food, coffee, etc., and that was the best of what she said, moving into issues of condescension, invisibility, etc. Even Emergent Village seemed to be a bastion of white-males.
End of rambling.
er, one man, that is ... typos!
ReplyDeleteGary - I can understand how you might get that "ladies room" feeling...I'm wondering if it is because everyone there are women or was it because it felt like a "closed" environment? I'm just curious. I might pass your thoughts on to Kathy or Phyllis. Even if it just is a note on there that men are welcome to comment too.
ReplyDeleteBut yes, it is meant to be a place for women who might not otherwise have a platform and I'm excited to see where it goes.
You're right in saying that women seem to have a place, even in "emerging" circles. Yes, progress is being made, but there are many men who still don't want to accept women as their equals.
Erin, it wasn't that it felt closed. It was more like, if the point is to create a safe place for women's voices, then what business do I have speaking there? I felt the need to respect what I perceived to be the purpose of the place. I didn't feel unwelcome. It was just an unconscious, personal desire to remain quiet to show respect.
ReplyDeleteAs I read Kathy's "Removing the Stitches", it reminded me of reading, "Night" by Elie Wiesel. Certainly not that the experiences described were directly comparable. It was more that certain core-level truths were being expressed in each, primal issues of human dignity. In both cases as I read I remember feeling a sense that I was experiencing a sacred moment. I cannot adequately express the way I connect exposure to ground-truth with and experience of God, but that's what I felt.
Gary - I appreciate your feeling of respect, but I don't think "safe" means "women only". It simply means "safe", which is why comments are moderated. So please don't feel that you oughtn't read there. However, since it is written for women, you might find that not all the subject matter always interests you.
ReplyDeleteErin,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for mentioning Voca Femina on your blog - and such a lovely blog it is, by the way! As the default editor-in-chief of Voca Femina, I welcome men to read, enjoy and comment! Please! Erin, you're absolutely right - safe does not mean "women only," and we welcome the witness and encouragement of men everywhere.
Thank you Phyllis. I look forward to seeing where VF goes. And thank you for the compliment!
ReplyDelete