‘Spirit Rising’
‘Spirit Rising’ represents the undeniable essence within every living being. She rises in our hearts and minds as a symbol of our feminine consciousness — our innate intuition. Upon returning to live in Minnesota after 45 years away, I became passionately inspired by the spirit of my ancestors and homeland.
My vision of the Lady of the Lake, the prehistoric Minnesota Woman whose remains were found in 1931 two miles north of Pelican Rapids during construction of U.S. Highway 59, is believed to have lived perhaps as long ago as 20,000 years and may be the oldest preserved human archeological discovery in North America..
As her spirit flowed through me, I received a clear message of resurgence. It was one of awakening, of embracing our inherent intuition, cooperation and sustainability. In my mind, she was instinctively wise, older than her earthly years, given the harsh reality of her habitat. I see her as a reminder of authentic beauty and balance — a monument to help us further open our hearts and minds, to be reminded of who we are and from where we came.
Her clan is believed to have originated in the South Pacific. A turtle shell carapace, which appeared to have been attached to her waist, may have contained the assortment of bones and a wolf tooth found with her. The whelk shell found near her pelvis is recognized as one from what is now the Carribean, because of its characteristic left whorl. She is depicted confidently stepping into the unknown while in perfect harmony with nature.
With gratitude, I dedicate Spirit’s and my soul’s creation, ‘Spirit Rising’ to humanity. She like a child, or land, cannot be owned. She is a gift for all to share. She is a vibration, an essence very much alive. She is the Free Spirit who resides in the hearts and minds of all who honor and respect her spirit, radiate instinctual awareness, peace, non dominance, kindness, gratitude, sustainability, gentleness, graciousness, and generosity.
I feel the passion, beauty, and essence of ‘Spirit Rising’. She manifests through me, my artist hands and heart, as conduit. Anyone who knows about creative process understands the birthing of your own soul, over and over. I gave birth to a bronze monument, ’Spirit Rising’, as a visual affirmation, which reflects the undeniable essence within every living being. ‘Spirit Rising’ stands to inspire each of us and remind us of our connectedness , and harmony when we honor paths of wisdom – through antiquity. Our responsibility to our Creator is to honor diversity, and the uniqueness of all who have walked before us, with us, today and in the future.
‘Spirit Rising’ is a culmination of my years of preparation and experience - dedication and discipline to my professional practice by ever expanding my skills and craft with my inherent talents, and constant communion with my Creator, ever expanding my perspective and gratitude for all that is. ‘Spirit Rising’ actually came to me in the series of paintings and echoes titled ‘Eternal Dance’, in 1997.
Spirit Rising Prose by Marcella Rose:
Authentic and wild, emerging from the Source.
Unblushingly exposed, raw and untutored,
I burst into the arcane world of light
Like a fragile sprout baring itself to the rising sun.
I awaken to my senses,
A presence felt deep but never forgotten.
I am bathed in waves of lunar rhythms
While I wait in suspended fascination.
Fear holds me hostage;
Ego a callous guard.
Only when I relinquish the struggle
Am I to inherit my soul and live in peace.
My journey of surrender begins.
Pulsing with Divine Energy, I hunger for release.
I demand to know, to feel, to meld with all there is.
I explode – losing Self – merging with the Other.
Drawn in, I cup my hands and drink deep,
Crystalline gems randomly cascading into my soul.
Surging with ceaseless energy I raise my hands
And, like a madwoman, shriek New Truth at the Moon.
I am ignited by the flame of my infinite passion,
Saturating my thirsty eyes with melodic color and form
As fragrant air fills me with the vibrancy
of sun-drenched flowers.
The ice beneath me becomes moist
with the liquid fire of my emotions.
Feeling the warm flow of creative force,
The eye of God blinks back.
I am not alone; solitary but not lonely.
One, many, all sharing a commonality.
I dance with focused abandon
Twirling, stretching, reaching for the stars
To self-mandated leaps of spirit.
Sacred Inspiration strikes from within –
I dance to exhaustion, weightless, flowing like silk.
We stare into each others’ souls
And wonder where the I ends
And the We begins.
We laugh as one, the joke unspoken.
I attract the me in you, and from this
I learn more about the you in me.
We cherish our difference,
Nurture our sameness.
I honor my self, I honor all beings.
We honor ourselves together.
We recognize sameness, uniqueness,
We breathe common air into separate souls.
Confusion gives way to the gift of calmness.
Anticipation gives way to adventure.
I trust in my connectedness to all things
And, with a smile, step into the unknown.
I ponder the world and the world ponders me.
Realization of oneness is overwhelming.
“Who am I?” becomes “I am, We are.”
“We” disappears, “I” disappears, Truth lives.
I unite with all that is, leaving no animal, plant
Or shimmery element to loneliness.
Holding hands we imagine our future.
In harmony, we live forever.
