Happy International Women's Day

Today I scrolled through my Facebook account, noticing all of the different ways that people are paying tribute to women on this day.  Breast cancer, sexual abuse, "you can do anything you set your mind on", "go for it", equality for women worldwide--all ways that individual persons highlighted an aspect of the importance of women in our world.  I watched a hauntingly beautiful a cappella version of Lady Gag's "Till It Happens to You", paying tribute to women throughout the world who have suffered from abuse (see below for the link).  Each pointing to an aspect of the importance of women and our contribution.

I appreciate these grand scale gestures.  I really do.  They inspire me and make me want to do something to make a difference.  And I know that for me to make the most difference, there is a level that this happens best in my knowing and loving myself--just the way I am.  Not grand scale--rather the gesture is a simple one of acknowledgement of self and bringing that self to my daily activities and to the relationships of those I care about and those I interact with as I go through my day.  Recently, I was asked to create an acrostic poem with my name, documenting parts of me that are gifts to me and to others.  Somehow for me, taking a day like International Women's Day to a level where each of us pay tribute to the gifts we bring is an important tribute all in itself.    Below is my "Deborah" poem.  What poem can you create that shows the essence of who you are and what gifts you have to offer?  All of us, with our gifts and our weaknesses, our blessings and our tribulations, our push to be better and our acceptance of who we are, make a mosaic of beauty that celebrates today on International Women's Day.  Celebrate today.  We each make the world a better place.

      D  aring to be me

      E  loquent

      B  eautiful

      O  pen-Hearted

      R  esponsive

      A dorably Funny

      H appy

 Till It Happens To You (A Cappella Cover of Lady Gaga's Song)

Thank you to the Two Writing Teachers community for promoting the March Writers' Challenge.  Thanks for giving writers and educators a forum for writing and responding.  Your service to education and educators is valued and appreciated.

Reflections on a Challenge Met...With Gratitude...

Year 3

A year

devoid of ideas

and empty of words.

Things I have discovered

on this tenacious path…

Poetry soothes and

allows me to express

in a way that Essay,

so natural to me,

does not.

I want to learn more.

When there is a story,

there is most likely—

a back-story.

Or a story within a

story

to infer

to understand.

It is here that wisdom

waits.

Word play is one of my “funs”

I enjoy finding the right word—

Playing with words.

Finding the nuance.

Manipulating.

Concentrating.

Contemplating,

to choose the just right

one.

Writing within a community

brings wisdom,

laughter

poignancy and

friendship.

Connecting with words

across Ether-net

and miles between.

We join for

a cup of coffee

and share

a smile,

a tear.

Words become

with writerly practice.

Dormant

to bud

to bloom.

Writing…one word by one

We become.

I become.

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for dedicating space and time for teachers and teachers of literacy to come together to share ideas, practice and life experience.

To Vision into Now

At the beginning of this challenge I facilitated a retreat on self-care.  Sometimes when you facilitate something for others, you may need that same experience—with even more intensity.  It, with this challenge, offered an opening to me.   My word for the year is “spaciousness.”  I thought I would write about it this month.  Instead, through writing and retreat, I created it.  Or it created me.

One thing that I did on that retreat is I developed my first vision board.  Yesterday, I visited a co-blogger’s site, Between the By-Road and the Main Road, and she shared her “bucket list” poem.  My poem is my “vision into now” list.  It was born on my board, written across the pages with this challenge and lives in my heart.

A vision into my now—

Spaciousness

to be where I am,

to lighten my load

with some time for me.

My hut space to

illuminate  

mindfully.

Creative expression

and

spiritual writing

emerge from my path

to the page.

Where I am.

My space to

dance,

eat for nourishment,

paint,

swim,

write

chill out

and be.

Where I am.

Spaciousness

with splashes of color

hues of violet, green

indigo and maize,

laced with flowers

and rippled water…

all create a space

where I am.

I dive right in.

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for dedicating space and time for teachers and teachers of literacy to come together to share ideas, practice and life experience.