“Once upon a time, when women were birds, there was the simple understanding that to sing at dawn and to sing at dusk was to heal the world through joy. The birds still remember what we have forgotten, that the world is meant to be celebrated.”
Williams mediates on the concept of womanhood and the relationship between women particularly mothers and daughters. As a naturalist, she introduces environmental philosophies in the book to address the connection that exists between nature and human beings. Williams draws a comparison between birds and women in the way the female voice is important to society. The feminist undertones in the message aim to showcase that the female voice is necessary for bringing joy and balance. As such, the narrator speaks on the silencing of women through history by patriarchal ideologies that took away the feminine energy from the natural world.
“We all have our secrets. I hold mine. To withhold words is power. But to share our words with others, openly and honestly, is also power.”
The book focuses on the journey of finding a voice, in this case, women gaining power by sharing their words. According to the Mormon culture, the mothers convey their wisdom to their daughters through the written word. The tradition inadvertently transfers power to the next generation as there is this leeway that allows them to express their voice. However, Williams also dabbles with the idea of silence after her mother leaves her with blank journals. Therefore, the book demonstrates that power lies in our ability to either withhold or share our opinions and words. In that, the construct of silence is not suppression if performed within one’s own free will.
“My voice is born repeatedly in the fields of uncertainty.”
Williams’ literary journey akin to any other writer involves a stage of finding the voice that defines their works. Not to mention, the book delves into the variations of voice that exist in different forms in our society and the natural world. Following the mother’s passing, Williams has to decode the meaning behind the silence in her journals. She is thrown in place of uncertainty once again in order for her to crawl out a new artist and woman. Therefore, she contends with subjects ranging from insecurities, societal expectations, patriarchy, female liberation, and nature. This allows her to have a rebirth and find the voice that defined her literary works and life but in a different form.
