The Vodou Garden Redux

Summer is coming and that brings me around to thinking about plants, herbs, alchemy and elixirs. It's not a lack of things to do - it's the rhythm of the land. The ground feels alive beneath my feet and I want to dig in, to get dirt beneath my nails, and make time with the devas. Mind you, I am not about horticulture, manicured lawns and things all neat and pretty. No, my gardens are wild, barely tamed and hardly within their perimeters. I revel in big, blowzy plants that take over the fences and trees. We lost a lot material from the winter, so I have been haunting garden centers for replacements.

The mugwort came back in a ferocious way - it's waist high in front bed.  We lost all the wormwood, so I had to plant anew. It's beginning to settle in, though I won't have much to harvest this year. The Lovage is as tall as me and twice as wide. It's dominating the cooking herb beds at the moment. And I just found my precious Dittany of Crete on online. Gonna give it another go round.

I planted my sole Calea Zachatechichi, hoping it will do it's usual habit of turning into a big tree. And the Salvia is doing fine. I finally hit on a solution to keep it happy - basically growing it hydroponically. It's big and thriving - I have never had this plant do this before.

The Dutchman's Pipe (on the left here) is outside, turning green. And even the Mapous survived their indoor stint - they flank the front door, and are beginning to groove on the weather - rain overnight followed by warm sunny days. I hope they will bloom big this year. They are easily three inches around and eight feet tall. I had to top them last year due to blight. Hoping that pruning will lead to a bigger canopy this year.

I went back over my planting plan - I didn't actually get too far last year. Here's my picks for this year:

Moon (Water): Chamomile, Poppies, Mugwort, Orris Root. This year, I need to add Chamomile.
Sun (Fire): Bay, Hops, Hibiscus. NO wonder I am so drawn to the hibiscus plants at the garden center - I need one!
Mercury (Air): Cinquefoil, Damiana, Fennel, Lavendar. Can't find cinquefoil (its wild anyway). I will find Damiana.
Venus (Air): Angelica, Feverfew, Passionflower, Pennyroyal, Vervain, Spearmint. Got them all.
Earth (Earth): Patchouli, Sage, Spikenard, Vetiver. No spikenard to be found in Pennsylvania. I think it's a zone thing.
Mars (Fire): Bloodroot, Cardamon, Coriander, Dittany of Crete, Wormwood. Covered.
Jupiter (Earth): Hyssop, Valerian. Valerian I am leery of, only because it stinks. It stinks so bad, even when you walk by it, it smells like dirty feet. The fresh root is really strong - but it's a great skunk repellent.
Saturn (Earth): Fumitory, Mandrake, Monkshood, Solomon's Seal. Would love to plant fumitory all along the fence line. Still looking.

So I am a true Mars girl - I have all of the martian plants except Bloodroot, and even then I have it dried in the apothecary cabinet. Hmmm....I better print this out and carry with me, so when I swerve into garden centers on a whim, I have a method to my madness here.

One plant that has been doing exceptionally well are my mandrakes. No, not Mayapples - real Mandrakes. They have warty, twisted thick roots that look like a human body. They'd make Harry Potter's Professor Pomfrey proud.  I have White, Finnish and European Blue. They are producing serious amounts of leaves at the moment. I believe they need to be four years old before flowers begin. But they survived indoors for the winter, and are now languishing on the screen porch, soaking up the sun and rain. I have high hopes for those bad boys.

All this is to say that come August, I expect a bumper crop of crazy plants for Vision Quest. Once we are past Kanzo, I will have time to dedicate to the plants. I am currently writing the next class on service styles for the Vodou. That one will be followed up by the Herbal book. Stay tuned ~

Medical Volunteering this August in Cap Hatien, Haiti

Honor folks,
I am currently running a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for my medical volunteer mission to Cap Hatien in August. I have worked with the VOSH folks in the past, but this year, they have asked me to be an ambassador with them to Cap Hatien, in the north of Haiti.  VOSH is Volunteer Optometric Service to Humanity, and the local chapter is hosted by my dear friend, Dave McPhillips.  Dave has been doing eye work all over the world, and has turned his amazing talents to my favorite island Haiti.  I have done translation work for him, fund raising, donations and tried (failing spectacularly) to teach him creole. Well, he's medical skills are impeccable, even if his creole is not.

Dave has a large family, a big medical practice, a passion for collecting sports memorabilia that borders on fanatical and he still manages to work in Haiti four times a year. I wish I had half his stamina. So having spent many years saying I would go, this year, I am. I will be going with him to translate, carry bags and do paperwork in Milot, which is outside of Cap Hatien. Last year, Dave and company saw a staggering 1500 people in a little over five days. The need is always pressing, but those numbers can give even the most stalwart of us pause. 500 people a day - in the course of a ten hour day, that's 50 patients an hour by four doctors and eight volunteers. Staggering. Maybe I need to start drinking rum now.

VOSH numbers in general will give you pause: from their Facebook page - "Since 1997, more than 235,000 patients have been treated, over 160,000 eye glasses provided, and 16,455 sight-restoring surgeries performed."  Like I said, the need is staggering, but these folks are doing it the right way. They are training local doctors to do the eye exams and critical care, not just giving them a hand out. And its working. There are three new clinic in Milot, Cap Hatien and a small village just outside of the Citadelle.  Having gotten those practices established,  Dave is now turning his talents to my hometown of Jacmel, where the local need is just as big as it is in the north of Haiti. With the help of some of my contacts and friends there, Dave hopes to have at least one clinic up and running by next year. Ayibobo to that!

I am asking for some help to get there and back. I am running a GoFundMe campaign to help with my own costs of getting there. Anything money collected that is above and beyond my immediate expenses will be donated to VOSH for eyeglasses, contact lens, medicines and surgical supplies. I will take lots of photos, blog heavily, cry a lot and try not to be a burden to anyone, much less you all.

If you can spare me some money, I promise you will not regret sending it. My campaign page is here:
http://www.gofundme.com/8i44vs. Thank you for helping me get to Haiti, so I can participate in this very worthy cause. Ayibobo!

April is Mambo Petro

April:  Mambo G picked the Mambo Petro card:  Legba said, “This can be a sexual or physical alliance.  Sometimes it means exercise.  Sometimes it means physical konesans.  Let go of things that hold you back.”  Traditional meaning: Be willing to dive deep this month, to find the answers you seek – whether it is inside of you or somewhere outside.

This card has always given me pause.  As a Mambo I am always hyper-aware of myself and my words, actions, and gestures.  I constantly review what I am doing, how I am doing it. When I write to you either as a group or individually, I check and re-check my words – to make sure I said what I meant to say and did not imply something else. On a recent TV show, one character said “I always examine my feelings for motive.”  I feel much the same – what am I saying and why am I saying it.  Hence, my pause over this card.

The traditional meaning is one of intimate power. We see a nude woman sitting astride a bright red snake, flames extruding from its mouth.  The card exudes sexual innuendo galore – she is Babylon of the Bible, or Pomba Gira of Quimbanda, displaying her female sexuality in full command of the allegorical snake she is riding. But she is also the Queen of Wands in the traditional deck.  There she is imagined as a woman with a small black feline at her feet, a sunflower in one hand. The implication here is one of fertility, sensuality, life.

Glassman’s queen is all that and more.  The traditional little black cat has been re-imagined as a fiery red serpent and she communes with it in a green field, in the nude.  Her sunflower has been blasted into the flames that the serpent breathes out, and the entire image is one of energy and power.  This queen is stripped down, there is no need for decoration or decorum. She does not need the trappings of her office to command the serpent.  This queen is a take no prisoners kind of woman.

When this card comes forward, the meaning is one of cleansing and clearing. The Petro Mambo is a stern queen. She does not mince words, and doesn’t candy-coat the discussion. It is what it is. Her ability to speak clearly is supported by the fiery breathe of the serpent – her very konesans in physical form, writhing between her legs, lending her its strength to conquer what’s in front of her.  One way of looking at having the serpent as an ally is to acknowledge the gifts of knowledge, transformation and secrecy. It also means taking the plunge for yourself.  The Serpent in the Garden of Eden did not make Eve eat the apple - he merely implied that if she did, wondrous things would come her way. This serpent on the card is making the same statement - embrace all that I have to offer and find the truth of your divine nature.

This month, be prepared to hear the hard truth.  It won’t be easy and it won’t come with sugar to make it more palatable. It will be tough talk that will hurt - not intentionally, but for your own good.  That hard talk will bring about transformation, hot and fast. It will be a change for the better, even if it doesn’t feel like that at first.


As Betty Davis once said, hang on – it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Time to Talk About the Ugly Stuff

Kenny Klein was a Wiccan leader, a pagan elder and a musician. He was also a pedophile, a known creep who followed young kids around at pagan festivals. And no one, not his wife, nor his coven nor anybody in the pagan universe said, or did anything to curb it, end it or call him out on it. Yesterday morning, he was arrested for owning child pornography. He didn't even try to hide it - owned up to it and got himself arrested. And now, the blogosphere is -- what?  Well, doing exactly what they did all the past years of Klein's pedophilia career - ignoring it, hoping it will go away and blow over, without tainting anyone in the community.

Guess again. How we stand up as a community says a lot about who we are and how we are perceived in the world. Frankly, I find the silence deafening.

It's ugly, but let's review the facts. Klein and his wife started out in the Blue Star tradition. It was a pretty big deal here in the Philadelphia PA area during the 70s and 80s. I was not a part of it but I know many who were. Klein also appeared as a regular entertainer at pagan gatherings up and down the east coast. Many folks have some of his music. But those festivals are magnets for pedophiles. Kids are generally allowed to run wild through the camps. Clothing is optional, and parental over-site is near-sighted at best. It's a pedophile's dream, actually.

Notice I keep saying pedophile? That's because that's what Kenny Klein is  - he is a pedophile. A man who to see children as sex toys for his own amusement and pleasure. He hunted for small kids at festivals and the Feds found over 3500 photos as well as hours of videos showing children engaging in sexual activities on his computer. His excuse - they were for his own viewing pleasure. Wow.  Just Wow. I find it morally reprehensible and absolutely disgusting. So what is the blogosphere saying?

Well, some folks are saying, he was a good leader, that one should not throw out the magic with the man. Really? Are they that blind? From one side of the mouth, we say a leader should walk his talk, be an example to to his students. I have read reams of writing talking to this very point - the sterling attitude and positive outlook every leader needs to exhibit. How a leader must be upright, of good character, doesn't have ego, doesn't abuse his students, doesn't prey on younger members. F*&%ing REAMS.  That if said fictitious leader does not exhibit all this, then run as fast as your little Frodo feet can carry you, this is the wrong person, run away, run away!

What hypocrisy.

Here's what I think (don't candy coat it Mambo - ok I won't...) Your leader lied, Blue Star. He was a fake, a phony-baloney leader who hid his sickness in plain sight. How about this - just take a look at some of the books attributed to him - The Flowering Rod, Girls I have Known, Faerie Tale Rituals. Ick.  He was such a good liar, that all pagans have been accomplices to his pedophilia. Yup. If you were at a festival and saw that letch leering at kids, and you didn't go find the organizers to have him thrown out, then you just helped him hide his illness. People have said they remember him leering at kids in the pool at Free Spirit. Those same people are now saying they thought he was a creep, they thought he was a letch. Well, he was always a creep, he was always a pedophile and we let him come amongst us; we let the wolf into the lamb's pen and by god, we are lucky he didn't devour them whole before our turned-away eyes.

We can't say the magic was good, but the leader wasn't - it doesn't equate. If a leader is supposed to be an upstanding person of good moral character, with no ego, is helpful and insightful, then they cannot simultaneously be sexual predators, pedophiles, and morally bankrupt characters. No they can not. And I got one more news flash - a pedophile is born that way. Not made, not led to it, or forced into it or moves to that side or any of the other idiotic and stupendously ignorant statements I have seen today. Pedophiles comes into the world as pedophiles.

Pagans need to begin policing their own or the world is going to come calling and do it for them. And it won't be pretty. The rest of the world follows a pretty strict moral compass. It's very simple - don't touch children. Do whatever thou shalt to your adult partner, but leave the kids alone. That's it, plain and simple. And the punishment metted out for breaking this rule is just as simple. The Law (however you wish to define such a thing) places the pedophile in the general population of prison, and allows said population to level the playing field. Right now, I actually feel a tad sorry for Klein. He's about to learn what the repercussion of his illness is about to bring to his person.

Kenny Klein is and always was a pedophile. He found an easy way to satisfy his sickness. He joined a Wiccan coven, became a pagan leader, and then used his position and status to gain access to our most vulnerable members - the children.  He attended pagan gatherings where young children ran free (and often naked) for his viewing pleasure. The real question now is: who else is hiding in sheep's clothing?

Think about that while you've got your head down that hole. Just remember, your ass is still showing.

LaSiren's Pwen - Part Two

We consecrated the pwen on Saturday at Loko's fet. It sat front and center on the Rada altar, just soaking up the power.  The client adored her - as did everyone else. We sang, we danced, we saluted, and then I realized that C was here. She is a child of LaSiren, and a pretty powerful medium. As she is four months pregnant, she was sitting down at the point in the service.

 I was singing through Agwe and Siren, when I got to C's chante vayan (her valiant song).  My legs turned numb - a wierd enough sensation, but then the numbness crept all the way up my body and I found myself being propelled over to the other side of the temple - and then I was gone. Siren was in my head and blessing her child and the child-to-be in her womb.

Should have  known Siren wouldn't allow her child to leave without her protection and blessings. Anyway, back to the pwen - she was gorgeously consecrated by the spirits and handed over to the client. But as promise, here are a couple shots of her for your viewing pleasure:

Siren very much had her own desire when it came to how she was going to look. First was the demand for a cowl of wavy, fin like structures to the back of her head.  The wave structure was continued down her face and over her cheeks. At this point, I thought she resembled a Lion Fish, with the waves and  projections.

Her body was determined by the bottle that I used as her armature.  It was basically square, but twisted 45 degrees around, giving it a sense of motion in stillness.  I also did wave like appendages and fins off her back.  I used a subtle imprint of stones and building edifices, like a submerged Atlantis for the body embellishments. I also sculpted cockle shell attachments, and sea-snakes that undulated down from her arms.  The hands were heavy covered in clay and decorated with sea sigils, as Siren is a sorceress and commands the dead of the waters.

The face was another challenge. I did not want her to look like a baby doll, nor did I want a Disney-esque visage with doe eyes and wavy hair.  If she spends her life in the water, I mused, submerged, then she would resemble a fish.

I sculpted out the nose entirely, replacing it with a smoother, more fish-like profile. The mouth I modeled after my beloved Parrot Cichlids, whose mouths are heart shaped and open. I also obliterated the cheeks in favor of a gill-like shape, also modeled on the cichlid face. Finally, I painted and repainted the eye, but it still looked too human. Again, refering to the cichlid, I painted out the entire eye and simply dotted the pupil over the iris. It looked eerie, not human and perfect in rendering.  This is the first time I have used Interference paints.  I used them to highlight her head so it had a bio-luminence to it. And I diluted it as a wash on the fins and wavy cowl. I think it lent the right amount of "otherworldliness" to her overall visage.

I kept to a blue green palette and added a touch of red to hint at her Petro nature. And finally, I doused her in matt finish help tone down the sheen that makes this look so plastic. All in all, I am very satisfied. And I believe the client was as well. Here's a couple more shots of her completed:

Like I said, creepy cool and I can't wait to sculpt her again for my own altar. Mesi anpil Legba, for opening the way between myself and LaSiren. I will again complete her next week. Ayibobo.

March is Papa Legba on the Petro side

Legba from New Orleans Vodou Tarot

At the Legba fet in January, Papa pulled the Legba Petro card for March – well, Mambo G pulled it.  Legba said “There will be fast changes.  You need to pay attention.  Some may change in kanzo.”  As Legba Petro is Mambo G’s Met Tet, I thought it very appropriate as the card for March.  We sang Saluwye Legba e! Legba nan Petro, Saluwye Legba E! and I felt as if I had grabbed a live electric wire for the rest of the night.  The Lwa train pulled into Station Scheu and we danced with the angels till they departed – Ayibobo!

So what does this card mean for us as a house? The traditional meaning that was given is that this lwa represents the fire of the sun.  The sun is fertility, male and power.  As Legba is considered to be the solar lwa of the Word Made Manifest, he is the ancient male creative force.  And in his Petro aspect, he is explosive creation, like the Big Bang in action.  This avatar represents explosive and sudden transitions of a magnitude that boggles the mind giving way to choices that reverberated own the halls of time forever.  Bilolo!  Fiery Legba Petro, the younger, more aggressive avatar, speaks loudly and aggressively.  This is the Legba of impulse, fast paced moods, and multiple choices.  He is said to walk the fiery points of Mars, aggressively and without fear.  Legba Petro is quick-fire, a true mercury in the sense that he can move fast, make quick decisions, change his mind, turn around, do it, not do it, change how it's done, undo it and do it again a different way!  Bilolo!

This is the avatar of the Haitian Revolution. This was Toussaint L'Overture's Met Tet.  This Legba inspired and gave voice to L'Overture so that he was able to speak to an entire island of people and unit them against the common enemy.  This is the Legba who helped Toussaint gather the 21 nations of Africans into a cohesive army capable of defeating Napoleon.  And this is the Legba who rode into the Battle of Vertieres in L'Overture's head, clearing the Big Road (Gran Chemin) for all the freedom fighters to find courage and resolve.  So blazingly alarming and seemingly insurmountable were Toussaint's talents, that Napoleon sent an entire battalion of men to capture just him.  When Legba Petro speaks, nations listen.

In this month of March with its erratic weather patterns and wildly fluctuating temperatures, Legba Petro will be speaking loudly and aggressively for change.  Revolutionary energy will be at play. This is the kind of energy that can make your life feel out of control.  We just exited out of an incredible difficult Mercury Retrograde period.  And when things have been stopped or misdirected for so long, it's only natural that the first impulse is one of explosive action.  It's like Bodhi when I let him off leash outdoors.  He goes a little berserk, running pell-mell around the yard, up the hill, jumping wildly off the ledges and highpoints and running full tilt boogie for the sheer joy of having no tethers. But I watch him carefully -- he's still a pup and I don't want him to hurt himself.

You need to be your own constraints at this time.  Pay attention to your choices this month - they will come on top of one another, with seemingly little or no warning.  You will need to make choices quickly.  Those choices will affect your life and your outlook for a long time to come.  Be ready to change or be changed.

Set a place for Legba Petro in your home. As this Legba opens the way for the Petro nation, place him before or on your Petro altar.  Use spice scented candles (Anise, Cinnamon) or red candles or make your own, with cinnamon and anise scents.  Offer him spiced rum, spicy candies, spiced cakes.  This is not a HOT Legba -- this is still Legba, but the facet of Legba who opens the road for the Petro Lwa to come forth.  This Legba smokes cigars, not pipes, so a good cigar is always appreciated. And sing for Him - the "Legba Gwetor-a, ki lwa ou ye!" is a perfect song.

One final note – this is the Legba who will produce His shadow come September.  Mambo G will have to watch her work and her choices then. The road opening talents that are so prevalent this month, will revert to the opposite in six months time.  Everything has its opposite – and it is the same for Legba.  Where is He is quick to move things now, He will become sluggish, lackadaisical and pouty.  He will be more of a trickster than an opener of the way and much more likely to cause you to step off the beaten path but not for a good reason.   It is part of His nature – all Lwa have two sides, the positive and the negative.  It is naïve to think that They only do good in the world, when we know They can do the other and quite well.  So a word to the wise – be more aware in September.  But for now, Legba is a power house of possibilities.  Make good use of Legba during this timeframe – He can open paths before you that you never thought possible. And He will just as quickly close them down in six months time.

Spiritual Bejiggedity-ness

Working for spirit is a challenge - they can be cantakerous, touchy and outright indignant - sometimes all at once. I have a commission for a client. I need to make a pwen of LaSiren. This should not be hard, I am delighted to work with this spirit. She is the loving, kind, dangerously disciplined sorceress of the pantheon. Not for the faint of heart. She is NOT like Disney in any way. She can be vicious, mean, tough and tender all at the same time. Today, she's being difficult, irrational and to quote a my favorite niece, "be-jiggedity," a word that means all of the above - at the same time.

I gather Siren's thing - perfume, herbs and other ingredients to begin the process of assembling the pwen. Mind you, I am home alone. Siren slams down on me so hard I drop to my knees in front of my apothecary, the scent of perfume so thick its making me gag. My head spins, and because this is the kind of mambo I am, my first thought is 'I am having a heart attack and there's no one here to save me.' The dogs are not helping - I am now at their level and they begin to lick my face as they can smell the contents of the apothecary with it's doors open. Drooling in anticipation of what they think they might get, they are on high alert, snuffling and slobbering all over me. I get the boys under control, and rise unsteadily to my feet.

I check my list and fetch the items out of the apothecary, fighting off the poodles and my dizziness. I sit down at the counter, gather my wits, light Siren's candle and begin to sing for her. She's front and center, totally focused on the work at hand.

Allow me a moment to explain the importance of her presence: everyone, and I do mean everyone thinks Ezili Freda is the Lwa of love in Vodou. Well, she is but not the long lasting kind. And certainly not if you want to keep your mate. Oh, Ezili will get the guy/girl for you. Just not permanently. Want the real deal? Then you must approach the real sorceress in the gang - LaSiren.

LaSiren is often depicted as a dainty little girl, with sparkles for scales and large doe eyes. I am here to tell you this is not the truth - not even close.  Allow me to share a tale - two actually. First me -

I was about ten. I grew up on the shore in Connecticut. I could swim before I could walk - a protection all seaside communities should give their children. I am at the shore, happily digging for whatever in the sand, when a rogue wave takes me off guard and I am sucked under in a split second. I turn this way and that, but there's no up or down - just murky sand and water. It's getting in my nose and mouth, but I keep my cool and ride the swirling action along. I can't hear anything, much less see anything. But I feel - accompanied. Suddenly a large fish comes at me out of the murk. It stares me in the face - it's huge horse eye moving up and down. The mouth opening and closing. I am mesmerized - it's so big and so calm. It turns away from me, and I can feel the surge of the water's movement from it's body, when suddenly its huge tail swoops below me and slams me to the surface. I come up spitting and way off - like half a football field off, I see my mother frantically trying to get out to me. I gag, spit and look around just in time to see the tail of the fish - it's huge, silvery and sparkling - break the surface and then disappear below.  I turn and dog paddle for the shore with all I have left in me. I am shook up for sure, but also more than a little surprised by the fish's behavior. Blue fish are common in the waters I lived near - tuna as well. Not sure what it was, but I now feel it was a form of LaSiren coming in to help one of her errant children who turned their back on the ocean.

The houngan has a similar tale. He grew up on the beach at Fort Lauderdale, Florida. One day as he was wading out onto a sandbank with his father, he fell into a sink hole - mysterious drops in sandbanks that occur near the shore.  His father was a moment before realizing his son was gone from the surface of the water. Don was so deep in the hole, he couldn't get out - his father had to dive down to pull him to the surface. But he too did not panic - simply watched as a huge silvery fish swam around and around above his head, as if waiting until someone came along to help.

LaSiren is not pretty, dainty or even safe. She is a sorceress, an enchantress and very dangerous. She is half human and half animal - in occult terms, this means she has surmounted her (lower) animal half and is ruled by her upper (higher) human . But she is still half animal - and she can call upon her animistic tendencies when needed. Remember, everything that swims in the water (i.e. intuitive ideas, psychic impressions, emotions in general, inspiration) eats what is smaller or is consumed by that which is larger. In the case of LaSiren, she is the largest -- which means she can consume everything else at will. She will offer inspiration or take away any chance of creativity. She rules emotions, both wonderful and unworthy.  Siren can make your dreams come true or carry out your worst nightmare. As the queen of illusion, Siren is capable of many tricks and can lead men astray easily through her many avatars and paramours. She is not to be trifled with, and best left to those she has chosen as her servitors.

Siren can bring about real love, if it is God's Will, but otherwise, she delights in tearing errant men away from their wives. She is highly defensive about women in general, and protects mothers and infants in particular. But Siren is not to be trifled with. Married to the great Agwe Ta'Wayo, she is considered an ancient river spirit from West Africa.  She is not Mami Wata, and she is not Yemaya.  She is a separate entity with her own powers and protections. Those dedicated to her in Haiti dress in blue for life, live near the water and offer services on the shore to her. They dedicate themselves to the work of helping married women and pregnant mothers. And they are often very artistic and musical. Which brings me back to the pwen.

   I began to craft a traditional pwen - packing it and tying it according to reglemen, singing and spraying perfume all over it.  I smell like a perfume counter at Macy's. But when it came time to seal it, Siren had other ideas. I gathered my satin fabrics, but no, that wouldn't do. This pwen needs a house she said, hard and safe. I dug through my bottle collection and found the perfect specimen - square, spiraling with movement, flat topped. Perfect. Now to dress it in satin - No, no fabric!! Sculpt it - I want texture, surface embellishments, fins, a tail, shells, pearls, sand... ok mama, I get it!
So my client might have to wait, as the Pwen's owner has very specific ideas on how She wants it to "walk" as we say.
  
I'll keep you all posted...