Tamara Lynch

This picture of Ix Chel reminds me of my mother.

Ix Chel is the Mayan goddess who was believed to have birthed all the gods and goddesses, and control all aspects of water.  She was known as a powerful healer and a symbol of divine spirituality.  Most pictures have her standing with arms raised toward the moon bathing in it’s light or conjuring lightning from the sky.

But in every picture, Ix Chel’s dark hair is long and loose,  just like my mother’s was.  And although we were ripped from each other when I was only five, I remember that she was no pushover.  She was a fighter and I wish she was here to see how I fight for her everyday.

My mother is the eye of my storm; the reason I have stories, the reason I write.  How better to get over her murder?  Right?  I like to think that my writing not only heals me, but heals my mother, and that maybe Ix Chel is with her.