To Marian,
On the Occasion of her High School Graduation
June 9, 2006 I want to tell you a story.

Two figures (can be two females, two males, male and
female, maybe even human and animal; could also well
be/probably should be more than two) are making their
way across the ice. (The setting actually comes from
Ursula LeGuin's Left Hand of Darkness, although I want
to re-write the story without the tragic ending.) The
ice is thin; sometimes one or the other person falls
through, and the other has to haul her out. There are
meteors falling all around. They are holding hands;
they are talking a lot, although they are also
comfortable being silent with one another; they
often stop to kiss and to make love. They are also
consistently helping each other do some kind of
useful work: write a play, or teach a class, or
build a bridge, or a mental health center, or a
legal system, or a playground. An ice castle. A
garden. They are not sure where they are going,
but they love exploring the world around them;
they are also exploring loving one another. The
sexual and the intellectual and the spiritual
search are all one and the same to them. They have
only a commitment to keep on with that process, to
keep one another company in it, and to see what
happens in the time they are able to spend together. That's my feminist tale--
and my wish for you.

See you on the ice.
Love always,
Mom