Merlin’s Spirit Notecard

Description

“For a stallion and his son

the fire is carefully tended, tempered and cooled

by the healing feminine

to bring forth understanding and communication.”

Sometimes healing can be achieved with unlikely methods. This Arabian stallion named Merlin had become dangerous and unpredictable due to his mishandling by humans. Through the love of a woman, he was given the opportunity to regain his true spirit and kind heart, and was able to learn to live safely with his own herd of mares, and to have a relationship with his own son, Spirit. It is rare in domestic horses that a stallion is given the opportunity to know their own progeny. As Spirit matured, the two stallions were taught to interact safely in play without the rivalry common in domestic stallions. This healing became a powerful metaphor for the healing of the masculine in society. In this painting, the stone between the two horses appears as a weeping face, expressing the healing that is accessed through the redemption of the masculine, and mutual transformation. Stories of these horses and more are available from the author Linda Kohanov.

Artwork and text by Kim McElroy 2008