A Sword Is Actually A Key.

Well, yes, it's also a weapon and a symbol and a tent pole and all sorts of other things as well...

But in my mind, in the magic universe where I'm choosing to put my brain right now, a sword is a key.

Not just any key, mind you.

Swords either are blades or have blades, depending on how you wish to look at it. The part of a key that slides into the lock is called a blade.

Many swords would have designs on the hilt or the blade to indicate that this one is unique, like a key is unique to a lock.

In all the best stories and legends swords choose one individual and, whether as a symbol or as a magical item, open a new world before that individual - they open a very particular door.

At this point I'm going to stop making my case, as it's a magical kind of case to begin with, and explain why this is important enough to me to blog about it.

Sometime last year I noticed that all my life, keys have been cropping up as a symbol for me. Kept keys, lost keys, images of keys, skeleton keys, ornate keys, etc. The symbol hasn't been enough for me to wear it (not as appealing nor unusual an image as skulls, right?) but it has been enough that I've sought it out from time to time.

I recently commissioned some design work, and in doing so we discussed symbols that meant something to me... keys came up, as did other things I love, like feathers and tarot imagery and morning glories and whatnot. I was playing with ideas and thought "Ooh! What if a feather was a key? Or the bow of a key was a morning glory?"

It took me until today to have the epiphany that the symbol I carry with me around my neck almost constantly could also be a key, and actually is a key in so many ways.

This has so many implications for my writing right now, I can't even begin to write it all down.

(Musical instruments are also keys. So is light. More on this later.)