Vegvisir: The Way Finder

The Sword of Vegvisir

The transition into this year seems more momentous than usual. For me, a sense of chaotic resonance has accompanied the transition between decades. This sense, these whispers from the deep have called up a remembrance, a part of my childhood story.

I, my five-year-old self, was seated at the family dinner table. A powerful electric storm raged just outside the four walls and above us, thundering down its fury. We lived in Pennsylvania at the time and electric storms were common and so most homes had a lightning rod attached to the house that would conduct the destructive power of a lightning strike down into the ground avoiding damage to house and home.

In perfect parallel, a powerful storm was brewing inside our home as well. Around the family dinner table my father’s temper was stirring up some dark clouds. I was having trouble eating my peas. The texture stuck in my throat, causing me to gag. Sensing a lapse in the obedience protocol, my father pounded the table with his fist so hard that the plates jumped up and clattered back to the table as he screamed at me to eat my peas. I sat terrified, sobs involuntarily escaping. In a single motion he shot up, lunged at me, lifted me above the chair and worked out his anger on my bottom. In my terror, my body just lost control and I peed my pants.

This is my first childhood memory and I’m told those first memories are significant, planting themselves in the foundational part of our identity.

One of the magical things about story telling is that over time we can find new vantage points and gain new insights into story, even our own. My understanding of the “Storm Story” has evolved over time. I can now see myself transformed in the context of that chaotic storm around our dinner table. I see myself as a lightning rod, absorbing the energy of that strike into a grounded place at the center of my being.

The Marvel Universe character She-ra also has the capacity to transform bolts of energy. With her magical sword that works somewhat like a lightning rod she is able to transform destructive energy into a creative force. It is the jewel embedded into her magical Sword of Protection that produces this incredible power of transformation.

I see this lightning rod, this sword, this staff of sorts, which when fitted with the magical jewel, has power to transform destructive energy into a force for creativity, I see this as my Staff for the journey into the new decade. The symbol that represents this concept perfectly is the vegvisir – the way finder. The vegvisir was an Icelandic magical stave or runic compass that provided guidance and protection to the bearer.

On the website mythologian.net, in an article entitled “Vegvisir, The Symbol of Guidance and Protection & Its Meaning – The Viking Compass/Runic Compass” the Huld Manuscript is quoted, “the wearer of this symbol will not lose his way during storms and bad weather, even if he does not know of his destination.” This is my story of transformation and the Magical Jeweled Sword is the Vegvisir I am carrying into the new decade.

What story might invoke your Vegvisir for the new decade?

Writing Prompt for the Week: From Chaos to Creativity