08 March 2017

Becoming Bold for Change


"The Blue Marble" photograph of Earth, taken by the Apollo 17 mission. The Arabian peninsula, Africa and Madagascar lie in the upper half of the disc, whereas Antarctica is at the bottom.
source


“There is no chance on the welfare of the world unless the condition of the women is improved. 
It is not possible for a bird to fly on only one wing.” —  Swami Vivekananda



Tear her apart and you rip me as well.
Tell her what to grow in her garden beds—
dictate just how and where and when, and you
do so to me, too, we who were never
meant to be owned and stripped and shaped and killed.

As is Mother Earth, so are her offspring.
And all—each one of us—are worlds with hearts
and souls and purpose and ability.
Deny it not.  You want to control us—
and some submit, only until we wake.

Spirit feeds on the abundance of Earth
where both anger and love have grown from seeds
to roots and stems that cannot be destroyed
though she and I can die.  It’s better to
unite with us than to subjugate us. 

She has gifts to share of her own free will, and I
do too.  She and I both have hands to hold,
to share the work, to lessen loads, to pick
the produce ripe and fair, and to perfect
symbiosis here with soil, water, fire and air.

Hold her with love and you hold me as well.
All in fullness, we swim naked in light
and dark and have no fear.  Inhale-exhale
is prayer sans words, but voices are welcome.
Call, respond, echo, sing and have no fear.





My blog poems are rough drafts.
Please respect my copyright.
© 2017 Susan L. Chast



16 comments:

  1. Indeed Susan , i luv the prayer sans words,

    And

    i wish for every women on our planet to live without fear in a world that is hers TOO

    Thanks for dropping in to read mine Susan

    much love...

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  2. Oh, I adore this. I especially love the "she has gifts to share" stanza. Yay! Your words lifted me up.

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  3. So beautifully worded. Such a tribute to womanhood. Bravo!

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  4. Beautiful tribute Susan. I like the solidarity expressed here. When you hurt one of us, you hurt us all. This is the perfect poem for today.

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  5. Very well thought out composition. Wonderful tribute and reflection

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  6. How beautiful and strong this hymn to womanhood is Susan.

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  7. I adore you finely crafted wonderful words too Susan. Brilliantly done.
    Kind regards
    Anna :o]

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  8. This is a poem of connection, unity, love and rising above fear so perfect for the day. "All in fullness, we swim naked in light / and dark and have no fear." So beautifully composed for all of us to sing....

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  9. 'It’s better to
    unite with us than to subjugate us. '

    This is a powerful, moving piece of writing, Susan.

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  10. Wonderful, Susan. It has a hymn-like cadence.

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  11. Women are formidable. Subjugating them is not going to work.

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  12. Yes! We do have gifts to share, and they are received in greater fulness through unity than subjugation, which not only marginalizes the giver but the receiver...as well as the gifts themselves. Well said!

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  13. Breathing in, breathing out....expelling fear with each breath!

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  14. Lovely and bold as womanhood - as mother earth...bkm

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  15. I cannot understand how some people can be so negative towards members of our society whose wish is to contribute on an equal basis with other members. Patriarchy and all of its attendant misfortunes and its psychological baggage is to blame, I think. If we wish to change things we must start at a young age and educate our children as soon as they are able to comprehend...
    Well-penned, Susan.

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