“The word muse comes to mind.”
That’s what a friend said in response to this video when I shared it in my stories, which sparked a conversation about the muse—her supposed passivity and historical exploitation.
“Being called a muse is high praise, but a beautiful object can be a muse too.”
But a partner participates in the work—“the work,” which is in itself merely active collaboration with everything around us.
Nothing to extract. Nothing to contain.
Everything to gain.