Touted in the press as ‘An
Irish Eat, Pray, Love’ meets
‘Sex and the City’.
Love & the Goddess
One woman, One myth, Three Goddesses
A woman’s voyage of self discovery begins on the internet leading
all the way to Brazil and onto the Andean highlands of Peru.
Devastated from her relationship break- up,
Kate Canavan is at a loss until she re-discovers a hidden painting of the
triple Goddess from Greek mythology. Her interest in mythology and spirituality
is re-ignited. A voyage of self discovery begins with internet dating using the
names of each of the Goddesses in the triple myth.
When a health scare intervenes Kate and her friends go together to visit a
famous healer in Brazil and a spiritual guru in Peru, where all three friends
begin spiritual journeys of forgiveness, gratitude and learning to live in the
now.
Ferdia
Mac Anna (author of cult book to movie Last of the high Kings) says:-
"Funny, informative heart-warming and wildly
entertaining. This novel takes the reader on an exhilarating roller-coaster
ride though modern romance, internet dating, Peruvian Gurus, wannabes,
has-beens and lotharios and brings them home safe and almost sound. This book
rocks!'
Author bio – Mary Elizabeth Coen
Living in Ireland, Mary Elizabeth Coen is a former Home
Economics teacher and lifestyle journalist. Mary E. runs a website called Goddess MECA which stands for Mary Elizabeth Coen Assists the Goddess in everywoman through sharing her love of cookery fashion
and mythology. The url is www.goddessmeca.com
Mary says “Though I always dreamed of being
a writer, I took a rather circuitous route getting here. You could say I have
had several incarnations in this lifetime from Home Economics teacher to
Fashion Editor of a magazine, along with being mother to my three wonderful
children, Mark, Janet and Emily. Due to demand from clients I opened my own pr
consultancy firm specializing in fashion; - the dream job for a fashionista,
availing of great discounts on wonderful shoes and vintage clothing!
Sadly it was not meant to last as in 2004 my health deteriorated and as a
result, work had to take a back seat. I became interested in holistic medicine,
personal development and writing in an attempt to cope with my diagnosis of
fibromyalgia. In the process, I developed a passion for mythology, philosophy
and the study of ancient spiritual traditions. As a spiritual seeker, I’ve
travelled to Mayan sites in Mexico, visited a famous healer’s ashram in Brazil
and undertook a shamanic journey through Peru.”
Love & the Goddess is closely based on
memoir.
Excerpt
form Love & the Goddess by Mary Elizabeth Coen
It was with great
reluctance that I got ready to go out that evening, since I would have
preferred to spend time writing in my journal before taking an early night. But
there was no dissuading Ella, who called for me at eight to tell me our black
cab was waiting. The driver took off at speed up the main street before turning
down a side road with high white walls on either side.
“It seems very quiet
for a party. Are you sure you have the right night?” I asked as Ella paid the
taxi driver and we got out on the silent street in front of what appeared to be
a plain pebble-dash house. With its continuous high wall running along the
side, it was difficult to make out its exact size or shape.
“I fibbed. It’s a
double date. Oh don’t be mad, Kate. Nothing serious – just a bit of male
company. They’re fine. Virtual monks, if you ask me. Hey, you can even team up
with the good-looking guy.”
“Are you mad? They
could be crazies!” I was about to turn away when the wrought-iron door opened
wide.
“Hello, ladies,”
said one of the most fascinating-looking men I had ever met. Of indeterminable
age, anywhere between thirty five and fifty, his facial features were so strong
and outrageously unusual; he qualified as both ugly and beautiful. Ebony black
skin, wide nose, wide lips, cheekbones so sharp they could slice cheese. With
huge expressive eyes and a charming smile, the effect was totally disarming.
“We’ve been expecting you. Adolfo’s inside. I’m Nat.”
Ella smiled at me and
I felt as if I was compelled by a supernatural force to go along with whatever
was about to unfold, despite wondering had I taken leave of my senses. As we
followed Nat through the house, Ella nudged me, nodding at his trim torso
visible through a black t-shirt over denim-clad snake hips. With his graceful,
animal-like stride, he led us down the cool white stucco-plastered corridor
into a large villa-style living room. There he introduced me to Adolfo, a
short, stocky man in his early fifties with an air of business and a whiff of
Cuban cigars about him. Ella had told me on the way there that Adolfo was
originally from Rio de Janiero, but she hadn’t told me anything about this
other man.
“Where are you from
Nat?” I asked, after we got over the initial pleasantries.
“I grew up in LA
with a Jamaican mother and a father who was half-Brazilian and half-American.”
“And where did you
two meet each other?”
“I worked in LA for
a while,” said Adolfo. “Our wives became best friends. I’m divorced now and
back in Rio, and Nat’s lovely wife passed on two years ago. But we still get
together, and I keep this place here for whenever I come to see the Healer,
maybe twice a year. Would you like some wine, ladies, or something
non-alcoholic?”
Judging by the
elaborate mosaic tiles on the floor, I guessed Adolfo was wealthy to afford a
place like this merely for the odd visit. Not having started my herbs yet, I
agreed to one glass of wine as I sank into the squishy tan leather sofa beside
Nat. I wished Ella would stop winking. It was becoming very obvious. Soon the
conversation was flowing along with the wine. I was on my second glass. The two
men were interesting, both mellow and gentle in the way people who meditate
regularly appear to be. Adolfo said he had become less hung up on making lots
of money after he underwent a two-year battle with cancer, which had now been
in remission for over seven years. Nat’s wife had been diagnosed with ovarian
cancer and Adolfo had suggested she visit the Healer, and stay in his house.
Nat took up the
story: “Lexie didn’t recover but she lived a year longer than any doctor
predicted and she gained a great acceptance of death, for which we were both
grateful. While she was ill, we visited the Healer four times and Lexie found
an inner peace she’d never had in her life before. She was so devoted to him;
she used to kiss his feet each time she came. She really loved the energy in
the ashram and the village.”
“This place is very
peaceful and so is this house. The view is amazing.” Outside the window, a
gentle breeze nudged graceful hibiscus trees to salsa in and out towards each
other while displaying their dark green leaves and trumpet-shaped pink and
purple flowers, as if intentionally attracting the large bumble bees that
clustered around them.
“You need to see the
view from the balcony upstairs,” Nat said.
“I’d love to. I
could do with a bit of air.” Following Nat upstairs, I wondered why Ella and
Adolfo hadn’t joined us. At the top of the stairs, Nat turned right into an
open space, at the end of which stood a set of double French doors. These he
slid sideways, before waving his hand for me to step through before him. I
gasped as the most spectacular view stretched before my eyes. The chirping of
crickets filled the air, scented with bougainvillea and pine. Tall trees
forested the slopes of the untamed valley, while yuccas, cacti and vines
flooded the garden below. As we stood there a flock of yellow butterflies
fluttered within arm’s reach. “It’s wonderful,” I said. There was a long
silence. Eventually, I dared ask, “Why do you come back here, now that your
wife has passed on?”
He said, picking a
leaf from a mint plant on a tall wrought iron stand, “I have problems with
addiction. That’s why I’ve come to see the Healer.”
“Addiction to what?”
it just slipped out before I realized how intrusive the question was. “I’m
sorry, if you don’t want to tell me…” Hiding my confusion, I raised my glass to
my mouth.
Nat didn’t look like
I was intruding. He turned, smiling softly. “I am a sex addict.”
I swallowed my wine
in a gulp, hastily averting my eyes to study a nearby jacaranda blossom. I
could feel a hot blush turning my face bright red.
He said, “It sounds
worse than it is, Kate. I’m not a sexual deviant. I became very promiscuous
after Lexie died and I used sex as a drug. Believe me, a lot of people have
this addiction and will never own up to it. Someone addicted to porn, even if
he or she has never had sex, could be classified as a sex addict. If you
understand the nature of addiction you will know that addicts cannot bear to
feel their feelings, finding emotions too raw, and their wounds too deep to
touch. Instead they act out with inappropriate behavior to dull the pain, but
their lives eventually spiral out of control.”
“Sorry. It sounds
so...” I couldn’t finish the sentence. I wanted to say perverted and realized
how judgmental that would sound. After all, I didn’t really know anything about
the nature of addictions.
“Dangerous? No don’t
worry. I assure you I’m not a rapist. And I try hard to practice celibacy
because it’s essential for me. I’ve started a new relationship with a lovely
girl. We’ve been dating for three months now and our relationship is celibate
because I know now that if a relationship starts out being sexual, then my judgment
gets clouded. I need it to work on the friendship and trust level first, which
is difficult.”
I was humbled by
Nat’s frank admission and felt a surge of admiration for him as I watched him
pick another leaf from the mint plant to chew in absent-minded fashion. “That’s
what I always thought, partly because I was brought up as a Catholic, but also
because it felt safe. Then what do I do? At an age when I should know better, I
go to bed with a bollocks on the second date.” I winced. “Excuse me, that’s my
new word for someone despicable.”
“We all have to
learn our own way of being in the world, Kate, and sometimes it’s through our
mistakes we learn most of all.”
“So… Meeting me
tonight? Why did you agree to it?”
“I love the company
of women. That doesn’t mean I need to seduce every woman I meet. Don’t get me
wrong. I’d still like to, but I’m learning restraint.”
Listening to him
talk like that, I was reminded of being told inappropriately at fourteen years
of age by a woman I baby-sat for, that the reason she had had five children in
six years was because “My husband, like all men, is sex mad.” Since then,
throughout my teens, I’d feared the sexual urge was similar to the opening of
Pandora’s box. It was easier for a virgin to be chaste but once tasted, sexual
desire would be more difficult for either gender to control. “Good for you,
Nat. I think I may be addicted to sleeping pills. I’ve been taking one every
night for almost eighteen years. It doesn’t always manage to conk me out, but I
haven’t been able to give them up.” I fell silent, taken aback my own
admission, and then turned to look at his face for a reaction.
“Balancing your
chakras is important for handling addictions. You can meditate better once your
chakras are open.” His tone was soft, the expression on his face kind.
“How does that
work?”
“I can show you how,
if you’d like to sit with me in the meditation room next door.”
Glancing at my
watch, I asked “How long will it take?”
“Oh, just fifteen
minutes.” He walked across the landing towards a door on the left and opened
it, gesturing for me to enter. It was an unfurnished room, oak floor covered
with two large intarsia patterned rugs and a scattering of large square
cushions in shades of orange and green. Unlit candles were placed at intervals
in front of the skirting board. Nat walked over to a docking system and turned
on some relaxing music. Next I joined him in sitting down as he demonstrated
the correct posture for sitting in half lotus with the help of a tiny cushion
called a zafu. I copied his posture,
sitting with my spine straight.
“Now, relax your
shoulders. Inhale slowly and deeply. Visualize a white light coming through
your crown chakra. Relax and exhale.”
After a few breaths
I could feel myself melting into an easy peaceful bliss. Then Nat spoke softly.
“Kate, your heart chakra is very blocked. May I adjust it for you? Just nod if
you agree.” I nodded. Then I felt Nat’s firm hand resting flat on my upper back
while his other hand seemed to make a small clockwise motion between my
breasts. I told myself not to react even though my personal space was now being
invaded and I could feel and smell Nat’s warm minted breath on my face. I’d
read about healers and gurus adjusting people’s chakras, especially the heart
chakra which is supposedly concerned with allowing in the emotions of love,
forgiveness and compassion. Then a flush of heat swept over me and I gasped in
horror. Nat had begun massaging my left breast in a manner more octopus than
spiritual. Opening my mouth to protest, I was suddenly silenced by Nat’s mouth
on top of mine as he tried thrusting his tongue between my teeth. I bit hard.
He gasped. Shoving him away, I jumped up. “Some reformed sex addict, you are!”
“I’m sorry, Kate. I
truly am. Please forgive me.”
“Save your wretched
apologies. They’re wasted on me.” I ran out of the room and down the stairs. I
stormed into the open- plan living area where Ella and Adolfo were deep in
discussion, examining packets of coffee spread out on the table in front of
them. “C’mon Ella! I need to get out of here as fast as possible.”
“What happened?”
Adolfo took in my shocked expression, and then clapped his two hands over his
head in exasperation. “Don’t tell me Nat lost control. Oh my dear Kate, I have
to tell you he has been so good for so long but this new girlfriend is driving
him crazy. Celibacy has never been more difficult for him. Let me call you a
taxi.”
“It had better come
quickly,” I said breathlessly.
“Five minutes,
ladies! You have to understand that celibacy is much more difficult for a man.
I too practice. But Nat has a girlfriend he loves yet she keeps him waiting.
FBS is a terrible affliction!”
“Irritable Bowel
Syndrome?” asked Ella, confused.
“FBS! Full Balls
Syndrome. It drives a man wild. We feel better with EBS; Empty Balls Syndrome.
Nat is so desperate from waiting; he would nearly ride a sheep!”
“Great, that’s
really great!” I stormed. “I’m practically assaulted and now you tell me he’s
so desperate I could have been a sheep. That’s just lovely.”
Adolfo looked
pleadingly at Ella. “I’m sorry I said the wrong thing to your friend… sometimes
things get lost in translation. Really, Nat is not a bad guy and he will beat
up on himself so much for this. We are all here for healing. Nat is here to
cure his sex addiction.”
Nat was creeping down
the stairs, shoulders hunched, his hands together in a pleading manner. I
wasn’t going to hang around to absolve him for his wrong doings. “Ella, I’m
waiting outside. I don’t want to hear anymore.”
Ella kissed Adolfo
on the cheek and they muttered something about meeting again to discuss
importing coffee. I hardly heard, I was already on my way to the front door.
After waiting a few minutes in the chilly night air, the taxi arrived, bringing
us back to our accommodation. “Are you really mad with me?” Ella inquired
sheepishly after we’d sat into the taxi.
“No I’m not, Ella.
Funny thing is, I find myself believing Adolfo, despite the bull – or the
sheep, for that matter. I don’t think Nat’s a bad guy and he probably is trying
hard to battle an addiction. On the other hand, he could be a pure chancer.” I
laughed. “But now I’m more damaged than ever. Apparently I’m as sexy as any old
sheep. I mean seriously how do I recover from that bitter blow to my ego?”
