I AM A MERMAID — Poetry is for everyone #11
Art for art's sake from a dear, dear friend.
I first met Louise Androlia in 2015. She was giving one of her talks on ‘Feeling Feelings’ at an event in London on the spiritual circuit and completely blew me away.
At the time I was embarking on my own venture into the spiritual community, having recently launched Still Space. I already shared some mutual friends with Louise, but they were new friends and I didn’t feel comfortable asking them to introduce us, so instead I barrelled up to her myself and nearly knocked her sideways with the force of my enthusiasm. It was an encounter I cringe at now. It reminds me of this passage from BIG MAGIC by Elizabeth Gilbert, when she met the writer Ann Patchett for the first time:
… because I have no boundaries, I ran up to her after the event and clutched her by the arm, eager to catch this amazing creature before she dematerialized into invisibility again. I said, “Ann, I realize we’ve only just met, but I have to tell you —you’re extraordinary and I love you!” Now, Ann Patchett is a woman who actually does have boundaries. She looked at me a bit askance, unsurprisingly. She seemed to be deciding something about me. For a moment, I wasn’t sure where I stood. Elizabeth Gilbert, BIG MAGIC
Louise like Ann, thankfully forgave my over-excitement and we have joyously become great friends. Unbeknownst to us both at the time, we were about to go through something extraordinarily similar in our lives that would bring us back together in a far less forced encounter.
Louise relocated to Los Angeles too, which is where we have properly reconnected during the past five years. She is one of the people I rely on to keep me grounded in that city of high hopes and lost dreams. The last time I was there we spent a glorious afternoon in her allotment, admiring cool bugs and some miraculous sprouting broccoli.
She made some major changes in her life during 2017 and stepped away from her role as a speaker, favouring her extraordinary talents as an artist, and why wouldn’t she — she is an incredible and prolific designer, illustrator, painter, creator, writer, you name it. I find her utterly inspiring and seriously recommend checking out more about her here, including her latest offering of hand-painted ritual candles which I am obsessed with! And her astrological jewellery collaboration with Jessica de Lotz ‘As above, So below’ which they created almost a decade ago, recently found its way onto House of the Dragon. Sure. But you wouldn’t know it to meet her. She has no true concept of the vastness of her talents though I and many others tell her of them, I’m secretly hoping this post will help. She is another person I’m currently petitioning to join Substack at the earliest opportunity, her poetry like all her writing works on you like a truth elixir.
Louise has taught me so much about being human and continues to enlighten me on the iridescent complexities of neuro-divergence — and how to talk to cats. The poem of her’s I am sharing today actually reminds me of last week’s profiled wonder Seamus Heaney because of its deep earth-soul connection, so sharing her work this week feels like a natural progression. So too following my piece on Hilma af Klint and women whose work unapologetically divines from the Divine.
Thank you so much for being here. If you enjoyed this piece and would like to support my work, the best way is by taking out a paid subscription. Gift subscriptions are also available.
She first posted this poem on Instagram and I immediately messaged her to ask if I could share it with the community — she said yes! She also unbelievably kindly created this incredible collage as a companion piece for it, just for us. She sent me a few words to share with you all too, which I’ve posted just beneath the artwork. What an absolute gem she is and what an absolute TREAT for us. I really hope you enjoy!
This is a poem about how every moment is either a mirror or a doorway. It's about chaotic aliveness and it’s about death and grief. Everything is true. I am a mermaid, are you too? LA
I AM A MERMAID
by Louise Androlia
I am a mermaid so I have to live in the bathtub The water here is different to the electric wetness That just raced up and down my arms Good news, you are going to be fine! But you are really lucky Wow look at me Finally, a woman with luck on her side Unusually, my heartbeat was not ectopic Maybe I had been reset. I am not dead but I am still a mermaid A mystic tells me that I am Uranian Electricity thinks that I am kin So I am going to be different now But not more supernatural God, please no I use my newly charged self to text you I’m at sea with all of this, you said You shouldn’t have to use your super powers on me. I am a mermaid being chased through the streets of a mining town The sky keeps talking to me “What is the spiritual meaning of hearing cracks in the air?” And I’m running away because it’s 10.30pm and you let me be myself Every week I drive to buy roses so that I can learn to love better I remembered the date I’d had with an electrician He said - yeah, you gotta be careful with that shit My left arm still hurts but I am lit up I am the copper queen and I am lucky. The next time I speak to you I have stopped being a mermaid I am a siren and you are a ghost You are a ghost and you still like me There is a mass of black glitter that hovers by my chair I wonder if Venus talked out loud to herself this much You rent a car in the dreamworld and come pick me up Finally I feel like a girlfriend But I can no longer fit in the bathtub I have wings now.
I hope this poem transported you from the depths of Atlantis to the heights of the electric spirit in the sky, as it did me! Happy Saturday <3
Are you a mermaid?
I am now an affiliate of Bookshop.org so if you’d like to read more from the featured artists on our growing poetry curation, I have put together a selection on my page <3
Enjoy my writing and want to support it? Become a paid subscriber today. You’ll get full access to in-depth articles, inspirational tools, thoughtful community discussions, arts and meditation related gatherings, plus the full back catalogue of archived posts. You can also “like” my posts by tapping the heart icon, share them on Substack Notes or other social media, and/or send them to a friend.
A magical poem ✨
I’ve read it a few times now and let the lines wash over me and sink in. Each time has lead to a different understanding of its meaning. It’s electric and beautiful <3
'Unusually, my heartbeat was not ectopic' - that line took my breath away. As an open water mermaid myself and someone who has experienced dramatic life change, I love the flow of this piece. It made me think how wonderful it would be to see a collection of poetry lines that stand out for people, ones that arrest the soul. Funnily enough it always takes me back to studying Seamus Heaney as a teenager!