Those who know me and play with me learn a few things about me very quickly.
1. My intense drive for precision.
2. My passion for semantics
When these elements are combined it can lead to quite an adventure in the world of word play. It also leads one to ponder of the words used to define oneself. I am often asked to explain how I “identify” myself, and what those words mean, either by clients or the classrooms of students I present to, these thoughts have been on my mind as of late.
Prior to going further, I must confess that I have a deep love affair for the works of Merriam- Webster. When I was quite young, it seemed as though anything I wanted to know the answer to could be found amongst the pages of a dictionary. If the initial answer created more questions, I simply looked up the next word which caused the confusion, to relieve my frustration. So began my love affair with words and their usage.
There is one word, often miss-used and misunderstood in our culture and lifestyle that I would like to take a moment to clarify. Many of you I’m sure familiar with its origins and meaning but for those of you who are not, I invite you to relearn “Mistress”.
Mistress, professional title, has changed radically in meaning over time from its original source of power to now meaning a woman who is scarcely more than a trollop. If Ladies, titling themselves “Mistress” and clients seeking out Mistresses don’t understand or remember the reverence and authority vested in the title of such, there is no point in possessing it and we might as well just be called by name.
I embrace and cherish my title, the history of it and all that it stands for. So in the spirit of DomCon and so many wonderfully strong women coming together to celebrate our careers of passion, skill and power exchange; please take a moment to refresh yourselves of what a Mistress truly is:
Definition of MISTRESS
1
: a woman who has power, authority, or ownership: as
a : the female head of a household
b : a woman who employs or supervises servants
c : a woman who is in charge of a school or other establishment
d : a woman of the Scottish nobility having a status comparable to that of a master
2
a chiefly British : a female teacher or tutor
b : a woman who has achieved mastery in some field
3
: something personified as female that rules, directs, or dominates <when Rome was mistress of the world>
Take care everyone!
Play safe and I’ll see you at DomCon!
Mistress Shae Flanigan