Before she married, she thought she was in love; but the happiness that should have resulted from that love, somehow had not come. It seemed to her that she must have made a mistake, have misunderstood in some way or another. And Emma tried hard to discover what, precisely, it was in life that was denoted by the words "joy, passion, intoxication," which had always looked so fine in her books.
--Gustave Flaubert, Madame Bovary (1857)

Thanks KG for passing along this Audre Lorde quote:

"we have to consciously study how to be tender with each other until it becomes habit because what was native has been stolen from us, the love of black women for each other. but we can practice being gentle with ourselves by being gentle with that piece of ourselves that is hardest to hold, by giving more to the brave bruised girlchild within each of us, by expecting a little less from her gargantuan efforts to excel. we can love her in the light as well as in the darkness, quiet her frenzy toward perfection and encourage her attentions toward fulfillment. maybe then we will come to appreciate more how much she has taught us, and how much she is doing to keep this world revolving toward some livable future....it would be ridiculous to believe that this process is not lengthy and difficult. it is suicidal to believe it is not possible."

Identity

"As a woman I want no country. As a woman my country is the whole world."
Mary Daly, Pure Lust

Camus

Thanks Debbie for this:

"One of the temptations of the artist is to believe himself solitary,
and in truth he hears this shouted at him with a certain base
delight. But this is not true. He stands in the midst of all, in the
same rank, neither higher nor lower, with all those who are working
and struggling. His very vocation, in the face of oppression, is to
open the prisons and to give voice to the sorrows and joys of all.
This is where art, against its enemies, justifies itself by proving
precisely that it is no one's enemy. By itself art could probably not
produce the renascence which implies justice and liberty. But without
it, that renascence would be without forms and, consequently, would be
nothing. Without culture, and the relative freedom it implies,
society, even when perfect, is but a jungle. This is why any
authentic creation is a gift to the future." -- The Myth of Sisyphus

The Original Black Mother

"Culture is people's own vision of themselves in relation to the world, created by themselves through a blood-continuity of time and space. Political invasion, via cultural colonialism, weakens the creative will of the conquered by destroying the people's coherent vision of themselves. Guns, police, and the invader's law help in this process; but imposition of alien cultural symbols and religious ideas are the most effective tools, in the long run, for obliterating or distorting a people's self-image--because they are aimed at the most intimate parts of human beings: sex and the spirit."
--From the Chapter entitled, The Original Black Mother, in the book The Great Cosmic Mother: Rediscovering the Religion of the Earth by Monica Sjoo and Barbara Mor

What Kind of Women Are You?

Do you wear
rollers & slippers
to the
grocery store
do you smoke cigarettes
do yoga
drink beer
or wine?

Do you believe in
the power of love or
eat the fast food of
hate
that permeates?

Do you have the courage
to say no to that?

Do you shine
when others
shine

or

get suicidal
when
the attention
ain't
on you?

are you beautiful
only if others
are ugly
or can all
reside in your heart?

Do you fill the hole
in your soul
through
cash register
rings

or

have you committed
to a little shopping there
and some self-confrontation here?

Do you seek the validation
of a man's gaze

Is it easy for you
to help others
or do you shrug
them off & blame
them for thier own
predicament, you know,
she made her own bed...

does womanhood
look one way to you
or have you accepted the
multitude of
possibilities
inherent in the word?
from raising other people’s
Babies
To avenging
Rapists?

Is there room for
high heels
bare feet
sneakers
sandals
jeans
slacks
skirts
shorts
wild hair
tame hair
bright colors
shy colors
children
pets
husbands, stay at home moms
career moms
lovers...

what kind of woman are you?
Do you humbly bow
your head each morning
as your feet touches the ground
and
thank the universe/god/goddess
or
whomever
you give
credit to
for all of this:
for your health
your friends
your family
your food
your roof

In short,
are you the kind of woman
who has realized
how blessed you are?