Sorrow's Kitchen

"I have been in Sorrow's kitchen and licked out all the pots. Then I have stood on the peaky mountain wrapped in rainbows, with a harp and a sword in my hands." ~ Zora Neale Hurston, Novelist  

Why men die long before women

"American men are allotted just as many tears as American women. But because we are forbidden to shed them, we die long before women do, with our hearts exploding or our blood pressure rising or our livers eaten away by alcohol because that lake of grief inside us has no outlet. We, men, die because our faces were not watered enough." ~ Pat Conroy, Novelist

When a Woman Believes She is Equal, She is Called Uppity

“When a woman believes she is equal, she is called uppity.  When we stand up for what we know and what we believe, we are called aggressive and unfeminine.  When we state that women are wonderful and that we are proud to be a woman, we are told that we are anti-male.  When we put forth our perceptions, we are told that we don’t understand reality.  When we put forth our values, we are told that we are crazy and we just don’t understand the way the world works.  Is it any wonder that we sometimes have trouble with self-esteem?” – Anne Wilson Schaef, Author/Lecturer

Every Human Being Has Limits

"Our daily lives are proof of our inherent strength.  We women move through uncharted occupational territory, have and care for children, nurture others emotionally and physically, and explore our psychological and spiritual dimensions.  Although we are usually strong for others, we often feel weak and victimized while attempting to set realistic limits that respect us as individuals.  However, every human being has limits and, if we do not honor ours, we can become overextended, resentful, and even ill.  So sometimes the most courageous thing we can do is be aware that we can't do it all for everyone." ~ The Woman's Book of Courage: Meditations for Empowerment and Peace of Mind, by Sue Patton Thoele

How Men Are

YOU KNOW HOW THEY SAY MEN ARE…

by Dr. C.P. Estés

I met a man today
a young man
with muscles
lots of them…
a weightlifter/ bodybuilder…

People say, they’re so taken with themselves
you know,
“all about themselves.”

He was clerking in a power-vitamin store
where I was buying the 4# jug of protein powder.
Upon leaving, my daughter pointed out
I was driving around with my new
license plates on the seat
instead of on the bumper
where they belonged,
and my temporary paper tag in the window
had expired yesterday.

I didnt want to get a ticket, so…
‘Can I borrow a screwdriver,’ I asked bodybuilder man…
thinking the store’d have one in back.

But, no, bodybuilder man
bounded out the door, across parking lot,
rummaging in his Jeep, but came back empty handed.
‘Thought I had one there,’ he said.

Today I met another man,
old construction guy with tool belt…
you know how people say
all those guys really do is lean against the girders
and whistle at girls and plan the perfect beerfest
in the Stratro-lounger each night… all while pounding
a nail or two daytimes.

Well, muscleman had hiked three stores down
where he knew construction man was working.
‘Got a screwdriver?’ he asked.
‘Sure,’ said tool belt man.

I had my hand out, ready to take the screwdriver…
but no, bodybuilder man was already squatting
at my pickup truck, unscrewing the rusty fat bolts
and slapping the plates on front and back, right smart.

He stood. Grinned at me like he just caught
a mermaid on a safety pin with no bait.
I blurted out,
‘You’re one of the last of the royal knights, you know.’

And he did that ‘guy thing’ that any woman
who’s a woman, loves so much, that ‘duck and blush’
thing men do when they are heart-pleased.

And carpenter man came to the curb to get his tool,
and bodybuilder man said, ‘Thanks Bud.’
Carpenter man said, ‘Happy to help.’
I said thank you too, and his  whiskers expanded
and went wide as he smiled.
‘It’s my job Ma’am,’ he said, and he saluted me…
Marine eagle on his arm flexing over the anchored world.

You know how those tattooed carpenter construction
worker bodybuilding weightlifter young/ old guys are.
You know how they are.

They keep horses
down at the river,
an old underground river…
which still runs clear.

“You Know How They Say Men Are,” © 1999, All rights reserved.  Dr. C.P. Estes, poem from, La Pasionaria: Collected Poems of Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes: A Manifesto on the Creative Fire

Beyond Nancy Drew

Resources regarding the role of girls/women in the home, society, culture. For parents who want to offer their daughters resources to be themselves.

See the article here: A Guide to Girls' Literature