Sunday, May 19, 2013

Seven Women

Lisa

In a round, they spoke their pain:
childhood sexual abuse,
the voices inside her head,
molestation, rape, violence,
the "disappeared" women
of the streets
who vanish, 
nameless and invisible,
the woman whose seven babies died,
one after the other,
the woman who thought she was well
because she "got on with it",
without ever grieving 
what had been done to her.

Seven women,
their stories all true, heart-rending,
and spoken with strength.

Powerful pain
and powerful women,
to have survived it all
and kept on walking.

At the end,
I realized
you could take any seven women,
anywhere,
and hear the same stories,
the identical pain.

And yet, we rise.
Again and again,
generation after generation,
we go on loving.
We rise.


Last night I attended a play about women's stories, spoken by seven women, the stories all true. My daughter, Lisa,  was one of the actresses, and made me proud. At the end, we stood, to honor their voices and validate women's experiences. What's that quote? "It isn't safe to be a girl child in a world full of men." Alice Walker, The Color Purple. 

27 comments:

  1. I think women are much better at dealing with adversity. men hide it, cover it up, pretend it does not exist. Women tend to face it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Amen. I haven't seen collective and RC theatre lately, but I've been very movedby its power in the 1970s, 80s, 90s, and most recently "The Vagina Monologues." It doesn't grow old when women bond and speak truth from the heart.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Lisa is a beautiful young woman, Sherry. I think you are right...if you take any seven women and have them share their stories authentically......... It is not only in the theater that these stories exist, but in the lives of friends, neighbors, mothers, daughters, cousins..... I am sure this play was very moving, Sherry.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sherry, I know the play, it is a great one and has such a good message for women - we are all different but we all share the same feelings and your poem is a testament to that notion. I love the last lines of hope, "we go on loving, we rise."

    ReplyDelete
  5. And yet......inspiring. Thanks


    Aloha

    ReplyDelete
  6. A vital piece to share, Sherry. I would love to have attended!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sherry this beautiful and heart-breaking, I can relate to the stories of sexual abuse, those stories are too common. You are an amazing writer, a writer that inspires me to improve

    ReplyDelete
  8. there is power in sharing our stories with one another...in facing those dark times together...be they women, or men...

    ReplyDelete
  9. Powerful yet poignant, and the message is so true.

    ReplyDelete
  10. written with real empathy, strength and clarity (as always). Sharing life's real adversity and challenge is when humans are at their most beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  11. This hit home for me...literally. I have been there.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Powerful women and powerful stories..Lisa is beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  13. How compelling... and your daughter's beautiful. I love the quote.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Sherry,

    Quite powerful when the play is acted out and the words settle within your being...The realisation about the broken lives and the heartbreak.

    Weel done to Lisa, for her role in exposing this living nightmare for so many individuals, who remain silent.

    Best Wishes,
    Eileen:)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Yes ... any seven women ... any country on Earth ... any generation. Your poem touched all of us.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ... forgot to add Lisa is drop dead gorgeous!!!

      Delete
  16. So sad that in a "world of men," women aren't safe.
    As a mother of three daughters, this is a very painful truth. Beautiful poem, Sherry & beautiful daughter.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Your daughter is beautiful and like her mother, stands up and speaks of what is most important to her heart. And I agree, any seven women, any place in the world. The Alice Walker quote is more than appropriate here. It needs to be repeated often,

    Elizabeth
    http://soulsmusic.wordpress.com/2013/05/19/mizfit-on-remembering/

    ReplyDelete
  18. <3 lovely!

    Yesterday was "Social Justice Day".
    I think about what the character Elizabeth said, will 'awareness' change anything?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Sherry, you know me. First, so glad your daughter had the guts to perform. Second, yes, it IS hard to be a girl child in "a man's world," even now as they attempt to chip away at our rights in the U.S.

    Those young girls who poo-poo feminism don't seem to appreciate all we have gone through from the early days, and I hope a lot of women took their daughters to this performance. Truth is always the best way... Amy

    ReplyDelete
  20. The predators are near at hand. Many though get caught in their clutches because they're often trusted friends. It's a pity. Nicely Sherry!

    Hank

    ReplyDelete
  21. How strong these women are Sherry ~ I admire them greatly ~ And your daughter is lovely ~

    ReplyDelete
  22. This is beautiful and sad and hopeful Sherry. Bravo to your daughter and to you. As I think of all the women I know I think you are right about the 'any seven' comment. Finally the Alice Walker quote sums it up perfectly.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Beautiful girl.A woman's lot is not easy being the sub dominant chord of the 2 chord piece. Hopefully things will improve as more women take their rightful place in the world as equals to men!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thank you for sharing this piece Sherry. Such events and thoughts need to be voiced more and more!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for visiting. I appreciate it and will return your visit soon.