Ta-co-bet: "The Nourishing Breast"

Mount Rainier is my favorite mountain massif, and I make a pilgrimage to see her almost every summer. For me, much of her mystique arises from the fact that I experience her as feminine. After all, members of one of the local tribes, the Nisqually, call her "Ta-co-bet," which means "nourishing breast." As a volcano that is part of The Ring of Fire, she embodies the fierce beauty of the Goddess. This beauty in turn effects mystical union through The Mountain's capacity to elicit a desire in my heart which melts my identity in order to make my soul One with her. In so doing, she begins to know and celebrate her beauty and grandeur through MY eyes, My mind and MY heart! What a calling!

Photos: (Top) Mt. Rainier reflected in a pond, with Magenta Paintbrush growing on the shoreline; (Middle) Detail from one of Rainier's glaciers; (Bottom) Fireweed, Reflection Lake, and Mt. Rainier. All three photos were taken in Mt. Rainier National Park, WA, on July 29-30, 2015