Dragonflies have been an inspiration to me since I was a child. I used the ‘Meadowhawk’ name and symbol for my handmade jewellery brand Meadowhawk Jewellery when I set it up back in 2013.
Meadowhawk is the name used for the Darter family of Dragonflies in some parts of the world and I loved the connotations of the word as it took me back to my childhood days of lying in thick long grassy meadows in Somerset and watching these majestic ‘hawks’ of the insect world dart around going about their business.
When a dragonfly flits effortlessly through the air pitching momentarily here and there I marvel at its grace, and I find myself completely awe-inspired. They seem to have an insatiable appetite for life.... attacking it with an equal measure of lightness and gusto.
Their mechanics are a source of wonder too. How do those beautifully engineered wings attach and work with such efficiency and power, when their mechanism of attachment is so delicate?
My handmade silver dragonflies are born
I had always wanted to hand-make my own tribute to the dragonfly in my favourite metal silver, and in March of 2017 my first large dragonfly was designed and fabricated.
I adore the substantiality of these large Meadowhawks, and love to team them with some of my glass beads for a real statement piece.
I confess I am a bit of a fiddler with my jewellery and like to hold and stroke my dragonfly when I am thinking, concentrating and contemplating. I find the feeling of the silver under my fingers a real comfort, and when when it warms to body temperature it feels like myself and my 'spirit insect' are one in the same.
And so the obsession continues with my dragonfly friends.
The silver dragonfly jewellery family grows
I have been working to develop and grow my 'English Garden Collection’ in the run up to Christmas 2019, and I now have a little mini-collection of baby dragonfly pieces including cuff-links, a pendant, and a ring. The smaller size allows the pieces to be worn more as everyday items of jewellery, but they remain imbued with the same strong emotional significance.
Having my dragonfly close to me whether it be the large or the small, around my neck or on my finger, helps me feel a little more strength, resilience and comfort inside. Now why should that be?
Let's talk a little bit more about the dragonfly's special characteristics and other reasons why it could be such a important icon? A little delve into the symbolism of the Dragonfly easily turns up several answers which certainly ring true...
They don't muck around when it comes to getting what they want. They have grit!
They are incredibly focussed on their prey and are brilliantly determined about getting it. They are not a ‘pretty pretty’, gentle butterfly type of an insect creature; when they want to, they go at it, and they mean business.
Busy dragonfly image from https://pixabay.com/photos/early-heath-dragonfly-dragonfly-2186186/
As a species they have commanded tremendous longevity and staying power. Dragonflies have been around for 300 million years, they have a successful position in the food chain, and they show no signs of leaving us any time soon!
They have an amazing capacity for change and transformation spending the first year of their lives as a water nymph and finally metamorphosing into the most brilliant of technicolour and iridescent insects in existence.
The remarkable unicorn-worthy colours also speaks to a certain majesty and magic. Once in it's final glorious form the dragonfly lives in the moment making the most of every second, embracing change, being consistently adaptable as life takes its inevitable twists and turns. I aspire to this so much - (some days I'm more successful at it than others!)
(On a lighter note they also take a bit of time to warm up in the sun before taking flight - in this respect I find myself similar to my kindred spirits... It usually takes me a good two teas and a coffee before I'm good for anything useful at all in the morning!!)
According to more shamanistic spiritual sources having a dragonfly as your totem animal can mean one can develop their ability to take things lightly even in the darkest of moments; "lightness in feelings and lightness in thoughts" . The dragonfly spirit animal invites people to keep a "light, positive outlook no matter what."
Well if that is what my dragonflies help me and their owners to do then I couldn't be happier. So here’s wishing you vibes of strength, resilience, hope, and the gift of clarity and a lightness of spirit to all for 2020 and beyond... - from me and my dragonfly family at Meadowhawk Jewellery.
Tranquil dragonfly image by Adina Voicu at https://pixabay.com/photos/dragonfly-dew-spider-web-morning-1729157/