Flaming hot flushes

Is it hot in this little cottage or is it me? Did you really need to put another log on the fire? I keep telling you I can’t take the heat anymore, things aren’t what they used to be you know. I realise, like you, I always loved being warm, in the hot sunshine, or sitting so close to the fire when we were young that we almost singed ourselves, but things have changed. I’m hot, I’m goddam burning up, hell I’m practically on friggin fire here and I think you know why.

For fifty years we’ve been playing it safe, keeping ourselves small, dimming our lights to fit in, to conform, to not cause a scene. Well buckle up girl cos all that’s changing. I’m on a journey to my very own burning woman festival and you’re coming with me!

The thing is, I couldn’t stop now even if I wanted to. So you’d better back me up here if people reach for the water bucket to throw over me. You’d better tell them, “No. Don’t. If you do that she’s just gonna come back burning even hotter, even stronger. She’ll open up her blow torch of a mouth and take us all down, diminish us to ash.” Yep, you’d better tell them. 

The touch paper has been lit you see, it happens around about this time to lots of female bodies, if they’re lucky. And some find it uncomfortable, some might even go to the doctor to get something to take it all away, dampen it down, cool things off a bit. 

But these are burning times my friend and they call for burning women. This is our superpower. This is our passion, this is our time for justice for all the injustices. For all the women who couldn’t burn, who weren’t allowed to burn, who tried to burn but were pissed on by some guy until they were a shrivelled smouldering pile of shame. For all the women who were burned for speaking their truth, for the women who now have found that rip roaring fire red flame in their belly, rising up into their throat, filling their entire skull until heat and smoke and flames start to come out of their ears, nose, eyes and their glorious courageous mouths. Now we need to burn from the inside and take it out into the world.

So come with me, let’s rip off our clothes – like I say it’s hot in here – let’s dance, let’s sing, let’s be creative, get connected and let’s burn baby burn like there’s no friggin tomorrow!

(Inspired by the book ‘Burning Woman’ by Lucy H. Pearce)