Leem of Earth, Pensacola, Florida, 2018. Photo by Alin Dragu.
Frequently asked question
What does “Leem” mean?
The name Leem is an extension of the name LM. When LM first thought of the word “Leem”, she looked up the definition and found that it is an agricultural term meaning “a very fine-grained soil that is plastic when moist but hard when fired.” (1) There is a specific type of leem called pottenbakkersklei that is used in making pottery, and this resonated with LM, as she and the other members of LoE declare with Isaiah, “…we are the clay, and You are our Former…” (Isaiah 64:8, The Interlinear Bible.)
There is an additional definition for leem, and that is “water soaked soil.” This meaning also applies. In Chapter One, Leem is a child from a desert-city - somewhere on future earth - a land lit by a scorching sun. Inland follows Leem as she leaves the city: “We have been strangers here, going through motions and so thirsty for a drink. We’d do anything...” This search for a source of water is one of the crucial, underlying facets of Leem’s protean quest.
In Chapter Two, Leem meets a skeleton. He tells Leem his story - “from straw to gold and back again.” He, also, is looking for a drink to make him cry and help him sing. There is the hum of a stream beneath their feet. In the chorus, the narrator sings: “A song came from the deep, underneath the country streets. Like water - you think you can do without - but you need water.” Ages old, this is a tale of humans gathering where humans gather, from Rachel to the woman at the well; vastly different stories, but the need is there inside each one of us. We tell the story of Leem.