Holding and letting go through matrescence

I called the session

holding and letting go

in Open Space and 

communion about

Matrescene, where

I had felt so alone

First came the mums to be

and our trans community

seeking belonging, solidarity

together we spoke

anxiety and patriarchy 

and mother as an 

access need

the barriers to entry

in our industry 

Mother commandeered 

in a binary

We spoke of arriving

late and leaving

early. Sleep deprivation

good-girl overachievers 

desperate to please and

hold it all together

from isolated families

An older mother joined

to tell of letting go

kids grown, flown

transitioned

holding still the weight of

Mother

from the invisibility and 

social poverty of menopause

disintegrating networks

and identities

Who asked how

Open Space applies in

Mothering: inclusion, patience

non-hierarchical 

allowance for time.

Who spoke of elders

from indigenous nations

sharing in open space

with voices heard and respected

I reflect on my generation 

of baby mothers

forging a path as if anew

but trod before, obscured

by regrowth of nettle and bramble

planted in patriarchal capitalism

We daughters, motherless,

holding out for a matriarchy 

Unshackled - let go

to gather in collaboration

and better hold those who seek

the becoming of a mother