Mike Duran mentioned his Mermaid ornaments, to which he got a negative comment. Here’s my response.
“Becasuse [sic] really, NOTHING says “the Messiah is born!!” like a half fish half woman wearing shells for clothing.”
One of the symbols early Christians used to denote Jesus was the fish. I collect mermaids, write stories about mermaids. To me mermaids are a symbol of myself as a Christian–I’m a woman but I’m transformed by the Fish into something mystical and wonderful.
I have always loved mermaids and am myself transfixed by water. A fountain burbles in the great room of my house; bells floating in the current ding against one another in gentle music.
My Wales book, my central work, is born out of mermaids. A mermaid is the center of the story as well as the catalyst. But it’s probably not what you think.
Mermaids are popular now, riding the crest of the paranormal romance wave, and I’m shy about them precisely because they mean so much to me. But I am compelled by the idea of mermaids, the idea of those who truly belong no place on this earth because they’ve been half transformed.
As always ahead of the curve. My cyberpunk mer-romance came out in 2011.
I do like your take on the mermaid.
The few times I’ve visited Mike Duran’s blog (when it’s been linked in your posts) I’ve found those kinds of “Look how I’m a better christian than you are” kinds of comments, like the one you responded to, to be pretty pervasive.
Yeah, they sort of do. That’s kind of why I don’t really move in a lot of Christian circles. Christians can be really bossy.
People in general are judgemental and bossy. Certain types of Christians may be at one extreme end, while certain science enthusiasts are on the other end. I’m never certain who’s being a reactionary and who’s just being an asshole, though. I’ve been known to be both until somebody decided to take me down a notch (oops).
I love your answer. Of course, I am a mermaid fan, too, and for much the same reasons as you give. My first novel is titled The Old Mermaid’s Tale, the logo for my Parlez-Moi Press is a mermaid, and the logo for my series of knitting patterns, Knit Your Tail Off, is also a mermaid. My house is full of them.
Eh, a lot of mermaid art is just pretty. For the same reasons, I admit a secret weakness to those fairy statues you find in flea markets or in the weird kind of store that sells ninja swords and smells like incense. People over-analyze things at times.
What’s weird is that the merman archetype is dead in the water. Even the mer-heroes like Aquaman or Submariner are usually the last ones guys care about in the superhero pantheon, Without the “siren” connotation mermen seem oddly lacking. I wonder why.