Monday, November 16, 2009

Nautilus

The Nautilus came to me as a beautiful image for a family. It comes with some lessons. The nautilus has survived relatively unchanged for millions of years, and is often considered to be a living fossil. As the nautilus matures its body moves forward into the next chamber, or whorl. The last fully open chamber, also the largest one, is used as the living chamber. It carries its home with it, and can withdraw at any time.

It lives in the shape of the spiral. The whorls of the shell all expand out from the same point, and remain forever connected to that beginning. As the nautilus grows, each whorl tells its own story. Just as children within a growing family.