Some women, like my mother, give birth the traditional way and by making art. Though she began her career as an illuminator working in small detail, she flourished as a muralist in Tintar and the Shark’s Keep walls are illustrated with the wonders of The Farthest Four, scenes from Nyossa and the ocean, swirls of color to represent air and bright red shapes to represent fire. Some women, like Thalia, grasp their womanhood out of thin air and make it their own, for themselves, then turn that inner strength outward and create shelter and refuge for others. Some women like my aunt willingly throw
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