Tag Archive | Poetry

The veil of oppression!

Jun15

I wonder how men would feel
If they were told to veil themselves
So that they don’t entice women!

Are men unable to restrain themselves
When they see beauty in women?

Does modesty mean not showing hair
Hands, legs and or the face?

Or were women asked to veil themselves
So they could be not seen and heard?

The veil
A symbol of oppression
The black tent that hides the body
The hair and the spirit of women

The veil
Prescribed by tradition
Not religion

The veil
Unattractive
Restrictive
Dark
And morbid

Beauty is to be celebrated
If you ask me!
Yes, modesty
I agree
But being enclosed
In a black tent
Is not the epitome of modesty

At a time when the East was
Steeped in tradition
Tahirih threw away the veil
Her spirit
Strong and free
Fought against dogma
And tyranny

And because of souls like her
Women will be freed
Their spirits will be freed
Their limbs will be freed
They will be heard
And they will be seen!

Lida Berghuis
April 25th, 2004

Staying power…

May1

There is a power that only a few of us have
And that does not include me!
This amazing power, my husband has
And my daughter Natasha has inherited it!

It goes like this:

Albert reading an hour, two hours
Three hours or four
With little breaks for lunch and snack!

Natasha working on a story
For hours at a time
So quietly that we forget
She’’s around

Natasha drawing and coloring at the computer
From morning till noon
And then returning to it in the afternoon!

Albert disapearing to the bedroom to rest and staying there all afternoon

To be honest
I couldn’’t do any of these things
I’’d last an hour, max!

Too restless to sit for hours
I need change
The scenery needs to change
And the activity as well

So, that’’s why I say
That Natasha and Albert
Have staying power
And I’’ve grown to appreciate that!

Lida Berghuis
April 30th, 2011

If my heart was a suitcase

Apr24

If my heart was a suitcase
That could only fit five things

In my heart I’’d keep love…
Love for beauty
Love for fun
Love for my friends and family
Love for light

In my heart I’’d keep, joy…
Joy of wonder
Joy of creativity
Joy of travel
Joy of wisdom

In my heart I’’d keep freedom
Freedom to be me
Freedom to share my thoughts
Freedom to learn and grow
Freedom to explore

In my heart I’’d keep music
Music of poetry and song
Music of nature songs
Music of the world
Music for my soul

In my heart I’’d keep kindness
Kindness to you and me
Kindness to melt the hearts
Kindness to share and give
Kindness to grow and thrive

If my heart was a suitcase
These are the things I would take along

Lida Berghuis
April 24th, 2011

To my children!

Apr10

dsc00531Sometimes we think we’’ve done
Everything right
Crossed the t’’s
Dotted the i’s
Taken care to be thorough
Taken the time

And yet something goes wrong

Sometimes we think
We’’ve learned from our experiences
In the past
Been there, done that
Figured it out

And yet we are so surprised
To be where we thought
We would not go one more time

Sometimes we’’re so sure
We’’re on the right track
Have thought things out
The road seems smooth and flat

But detours appear
Out of nowhere
We’’re taken by surprise again

Sometimes we think
We’’ve had our share of trials
Suffered enough
Been tested and tried

But we encounter
Another hurricane, and …
What we’’d so carefully built
Disappears in an instant!

Call it unfair
Cry out: not again!
Curl up from distress
Or lash out with rage

Reality can’’t be changed
You can’’t go back
And start again

But you can go forward
And problem solve
Think and pray
And talk things out

This life, is a series of marathons
The finish line, not for the faint of heart!

We train
We prepare
We do our best
But surprises will
Always be there

So, take it one day at a time
You will surely overcome
There will be gray days
Rain and hurricane
But the sun will shine again
You will feel better than you did before
Because you have overcome
And understand more!

Lida Berghuis
April 5th, 2011

Make me laugh!

Apr5

If you want to make me happy
Make me laugh!
Don’’t need expensive gifts
Or a Caribbean cruise
Just make me laugh!

If you want me to pay attention
Make me laugh!
Don’’t need fancy power points
Or audiovisual aids
Just make me laugh

If you want me to be your friend
Make me laugh
Laughter binds hearts
Like nothing else can

I have nothing against crying
Or being serious
But there is enough of that
Make me laugh!

Laughter is healing
Laughter is the best medicine
We all know that
So give me my vitamins
Make me laugh!

Lida Berghuis
April 4th, 2011

Time to bloom!

Apr3

To bloom or not to bloom!
To be true to oneself or not!
To risk rejection, falls, or other unknowns
To leave what’s comfortable behind

Blooming is natural
The way things should go
But blooming is not inevitable
Buds can stay closed

Wasted beauty
Wasted perfume
A loss for the flower
And for us too!

To bloom
We need to be nurtured
We need light
Water and protection
From the storms around

But when all the conditions
Are all right
The final step is
Up to us!

Bloom
Get out of your comfort zone
Bloom
Because that’s what you were created for
Bloom
Don’t by shy, timid or restrained
Bloom
It’s time to perfume that air

Lida Berghuis
April 3rd, 2011

The river of love

Mar30

A road might end at a single house, but it’’s not love’’s road
Love is a river, drink from it

Rumi

 

Love is a river
Drink from it!

 

Love flows like water
And nourishes the soul

Can’’t contain love
Can’’t run out of love
Love is not limited to a person or a place
Love flows eternal
It’s generous!

Love can flow like a torrent, wild
It can meander like a gentle stream
It can be noisy and loud
It can be quiet and serene

Love’s essential
It vivifies us
And without it
We will shrivel and die

 

Lida Berghuis
March 27th, 2011

One sock off!

Mar23

Nicholas has one sock on
One sock off
It’s an odd image
But what stands out
Is the he does not mind!

I see him walking down the hall
One sock on
One sock off
I wonder why he doesn’t
Take the other sock off
Or put the first sock on!

Asymmetry
Something odd
It catches my eyes
He is so at ease with himself
Walking one sock on
One sock off!

I ask him
“What happened to your sock?”
He says, “Natasha took it off!”
And keeps walking
One sock on
One sock off
I keep staring at him
And wonder why
It bothers me so much
That he has only one sock on!

Lida Berghuis
February 23rd, 2004

Soul sisters

Mar19

A mighty torrent flows
From heavens above
If I stand under it
It will wash off the dross

Inspiration
Is always there
If I open my heart

Words written long ago
By the hands of one who’s gone
Touch my heart

Sisters in this tradition
We call poetry
Women writing
For themselves and humanity

Women’s voices
Were often not heard
But times are changing
Woman’s voice is now honored

May 21st, 2004
Shrine

Reading Homage to Emily Dickinson
By Roger White

Normal?

Mar16

What is normal?
I’’be come to the conclusion
That “normal” does not exist!
My normal is someone else’’s insanity
Your normal, perhaps not so normal to me!

It could be that normal has a range
A wide range
From shy and quiet,
Contemplative and severe
To joyful and bubbly,
A bit manic and ecstatic!

Who are we to say what’’s normal?

Does normal mean predictable,
Obedient
One who follows rules?
Because artists do none of the above
And we would not want to have a society
Without artists, for sure

Does normal mean not in the fringes
Out of the box?
Off the chart?
Because life would be boring
If we were all in the box!

Does normal mean
Within the fdboundaries of reason
Dictated by culture and tradition?
Because nothing would change
If someone did not push
The boundaries at times

So, normal is relative
Based on our expectations
Our world view
Our culture

What is normal to me may
May be your definition of abnormality!

Lida Berghuis
March 16th, 2011