Painting the Goddess Within: Dark Goddess - Hecate

 First I will direct you to a *WONDERFUL* Blog post from Sheri Ann Ponzi: 

http://www.paintingherselfintobeing.com/sheriblog/2013/1/28/of-beauty-and-wrath.html

Then snarf a quote:

"So, yesterday one of the Goddesses in Painting The Goddess Within gave us a bit of a challenge. She noticed that many of the images of The Goddess that we were sharing were images of sweetness, beauty, and light.

And while these images are accurate, they aren't the whole picture.

Her call to action for us was to connect in with the angry, wrathful, destructive, ample side of The Goddess."

All this talk of the darker side of the Goddess...

Then when I opened up Llewellyn's Spell-a-Day today it read: The twenty-ninth of each month is dedicated to the Greek goddess Hecate, goddess of the crossroads, of magic and the occult, and the "dark face" of the earth mother archetype, often associated with death. Her Roman name was Trivia, literally "three roads" or crossroads.
Trivia's modern meaning is based on folklore about Witches, an old saying that "nothing of importance happens at the crossroads." These words conveyed that the sight of women/Witches meeting at the crossroads (on their way to a sabbat, perhaps?) was trivial.
In the dark days of winter, Hecate is close to us. Honor her with a plate of bread and cheese on your hearth or altar; eat some yourself, feeling nourished against winter's cold. The next time you come to a crossroads, leave a small offering there for Hecate, and ask her to help you reach your destination safely.
http://www.llewellyn.com/spell_list.php

That was my ah-ha.. for the day. Spending time in the Studio with Dark Goddess!

Placed bread and cheese on my Altar and listen to a meditation before starting.

Descend into the Realm of Hecate:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bWreMepjOg

Picture is not fantabulous...

Will have to take it out to get scanned, at 11" X 14" it's bigger than my scanner.

Sketched 1st in pencil, outlined in pens and then guides erased.

Colored with Markers, Water Color Crayons and Sharpies.

During the meditation before hand the 3 faces of the Goddess really struck me:
Maiden as Seeker of wisdom
Matron as Giver of wisdom
Crone as Keeper of wisdom...
The Crone spoke to me and her message was there are no goals that you do not have to reach through the fire first to attain. You want the Key you will have to get burned 1st... how else can you *truly* appreciate what you have now *earned*? Through this 'trial by fire' we are cleansed and formed in preparation for the Goal ahead. It is not a happy life lesson, it *will* hurt.
The Maiden cries as she gets hurt and frustrated while learning this hard lesson...
The Matron has learned this lesson and is now ready to apply it in a constructive and productive manner, thinking and preparing...
The Crone holds The Key.

Though she is not openly angry or seemingly wrathful... 

The lesson is a cruel and painful one.

Quiet wrath.