Goddess of the Week: The Vily

Image via WikipediaTony would like a culture clash goddess, a goddess who can help him flow from one cultural continuum to another. I think he needs the Vily, the Eastern European nature goddesses who can change shape to fit any occasion.

The Vily are like many girls you might have known in high school: they travel in packs and are really into good hair. The love to party, and they've been known to give awesome gifts, but watch out. If you step on their toes they might literally dance you to death. So, as always with goddesses, tread lightly.

The really cool thing about the Vily, however, is that they are shape shifters, and isn't that what you need when bridging the cultural divide? As shape shifters, the Vily possess the enviable ability of being infinitely adaptable. They can be whatever they need to be, and, therefore, wherever they go, they feel at home. Spreading your wings biking through Belgium? They can do that. Working the nightshift in police headquarters? Hey, they're totally cool with that too. And here's the kicker: As flexible and adaptable as they are, they are also, always, themselves. They may become the horse, for example, but they are still the horse with the awesome mane and the party girl prance.

The Vily remind us that adaptability and flexibility are keys to authenticity, not barriers to it. Adaptability and flexibility speak to a willingness to step out into the unfamiliar, and only by exploring the unfamiliar can we see beyond the limitations that self, family, nation and culture set for us. Only by exploring the unfamiliar can we begin to wonder who we might be and who we can become.

Channel this goddess: When caught between cultures or navigating between different worlds, when feeling resistant to change, when you just can't find your party girl prance.

Need a goddess: A got goddesses! Post a comment saying what you need or want a goddess for. Then check back in a week or two and see what I found you. It's fun! It's free! Why are you being so resistant about this? Channel some Vily and post already.