Women's History Month

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Poems For Women's History Month

 Women's History Month

March is Women's History Month. It's a time to celebrate the important role women have had throughout history. It originally began as Women's History Week back on March 7, 1982. The first month-long celebration occurred in 1987.
Women have had and continue to have integral roles in a variety of fields. Each year, the National Women's History Alliance names a theme of Women's History Month to highlight all that women have done. 
We all are familiar with famous women in our nation's history. But many women in our personal circles have also demonstrated strength, courage, and character. They are trailblazers and pioneers in their own right. Let's celebrate them this month. Be sure to share one of these inspirational poems with a woman in your life. Don't forget to thank her for the difference she is making in the lives of others.

Maya Angelou is one of the most influential women of our time. Her writing pulls on the hearts of many readers. In addition to her proliferous writing career, Maya Angelou has been a civil rights activist. This poem shows how even though someone is not beautiful on the outside compared to society's standards, there is an inner beauty that makes a woman even more beautiful.


Phenomenal Woman

by  


Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.


I walk into a room

Just as cool as you please,

And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.



Men themselves have wondered

What they see in me.

They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman



Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,

That's me.


Now you understand

Just why my head's not bowed.

I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.
Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/phenomenal-woman-by-maya-angelou










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Château de Gudanes in Verdun


Crumbling labour of love: Couple who bought a decrepit French Château for $500k after seeing just FOUR of its 94 rooms reveal the major lessons they've learned while renovating a 300-year-old monument
When Karina and Craig Waters bought the sprawling Château de Gudanes in Verdun, in the south of France in 2013, they had seen just four of its 91 rooms - and had no idea of the scale of the project they had taken on. Almost five years later the couple, from Perth in Western Australia, have published a book about their labour of love journey restoring the vast 18th century property in the Occitanie region, which they paid an estimated AUD$500,000 (£281,600) for. Mrs Waters opened up to FEMAIL about the lessons she and her partner have learned while turning the crumbling château into a working hotel.
The Château de Gudanes is an 18th-century neoclassical château in the commune of Château-Verdun, in the southern French department of Ariège. It is built on the site of an older castle destroyed in 1580. The château has been a designated monument historique since 1994, but fell into ruin in the late 20th century.

Several years ago, we visited this beautiful castle.  You can find more information on their FACEBOOK at The Château de Gudanes 
https://www.facebook.com/chateaudegudanes

Mississippi Mud Cake




Spicy Southern Kitchen


Southern Mississippi Mud Cake

Fabulous Gardening


how-To-Build-Squash-Arch



WOW!  I have a wisteria wall started.  This would be fabulous if I could
create this arch of gourds and melons!  I have been looking through all
the many seed catalogs over winter.
Follow the link to see so much more.

Blog of Interest


Once a week I will spotlight a "Blog of Interest" in search of fascinating/extraordinary journeys in writing.  Please drop in to visit them, then tell me about your finding using my email in my ABOUT ME page and be sure to FOLLOW me.  I would like to post your thoughts in another post.  You can be anonymous or give your name.     Gina

Blog of Interest

http://jacket2.org/commentary/amelia-dale

Sydney reading experiments: Poetry in performance is a series of micro commentaries, documenting readings and performances within the Sydney experimental poetry community. How are difficult, unreadable, "avant-garde" poems vocalized and embodied in Sydney specifically?
Amelia Dale teaches at the University of Sydney. She is the author of several online chapbooks of poetry, and co-editor (with a.j. carruthers) of SOd Press and poetry reviews editor of Southerly Journal. Recent work can be read at Powder Keg Magazine, Cordite Poetry Review and Troll Thread.
*
Jacket2 Commentaries feature invited posts by poets and scholars who take a close, serial look at poetry scenes, archives, poetic concerns, or theoretical clusters. Commentaries, although curated, are not edited by Jacket2 staff. We welcome your comments. Send queries and notes to Jacket editors here.


Scratching My Head


Ok, this is a shot of me pre-cancer/chemo.  

My hair now is beginning to grow back out and the cowlick is horrendous.  I hate the feeling of it as I had grown accustomed to a peeled head.  See next shot:


I got so used to the simple care of the stubble that now with the cowlick, I would rather have the stubble.

So, before and after.  Help me decide.  




Upcoming Jazz Festival

Jazz Festival 2020
Get Your Tickets Today!


Patti Labelle

and many others!

SAINT    LUCIA    JAZZ    FESTIVAL   PRODUCED    IN COLLABORATION    WITH    JAZZ    AT    LINCOLN    CENTER

Following on the success of the first of its kind in 2019, Saint Lucia is gearing for the 2020 edition of this collaboration between Saint Lucia Jazz and Jazz at Lincoln Center. Renowned as the premier jazz festival in the Caribbean, the 2020 Saint Lucia Jazz Festival produced in collaboration with Jazz at Lincoln Center will once again feature the finest names in modern jazz performing in intimate venues and public settings along the length and breadth of Saint Lucia’s breathtaking landscape.
Jazz at Lincoln Center has programmed a stellar line up of performers in 2020 who will be joined by an equally exciting parade of Caribbean and Saint Lucian Jazz musicians.