A Tribute

the subjugating power of Cleopatra
nine languages of suffocating words
protecting ancient autonomy
amidst her extravagant economy
the girl who defied Taliban threats
the story of Malala’s resolute courage
and the fight for equality and education
to stabilize the home of social foundation
the beloved Good Queen Bess
so unequivocally “married to the throne”
bringing chaos to its knees
and her conquest of the seas
The Declaration of Sentiments
He has compelled her to submit to laws,
in the formation of which she had no voice
Elizabeth Stanton now opens the door to choice
“The Feminine Mystique” of both praise and criticism
Betty Friedan’s boldness of truth, awakening a nation
To a new life plan, we raise our glass
To courage and a new enlightened class
Escaping from slavery, Harriet Tubman appears
The underground railroad she builds
The track to freedom for aimless searchers
Looking for a new found perch
the cloistered Emily Dickinson, so astoundingly astute
a new voice for women of idiosyncrasy
carefully selecting her society, controlling the disposal of her time
the woman in white, with her slant of rhyme
Shirin Ebadi so noble in her initiatives
And universal in glow
Children and refugees, and pro bono cases
Fighting for those, of nefarious chases
The Green Belt movement, so progressive in nature
Wangari Maathai led the way with vigour
Blending conservation and women’s’ rights
A modern realization, of holistic sights
the first women magistrate in the British Empire
Emily Murphy, of the Famous Five
The old Canadian law that said, “women should not be counted as persons”
This ideology, can only worsen
Helen Keller was a champion for the deaf
Enhancing their performance on the social stage
Speaking for labour rights and antimilitarism
Her soul to erase these worldly schisms
A poet Sappho of Meccan times
Devising the Sapphic stanza, of enduring legend
And her lyre was magical, and poetic too
Strummed to the songs of her sexual askew
Thwarting military leaders, and their condescension
Lifting a siege in nine short days
The anointed Maid of Orléans, Joan of faithful horde
Her divine banner, forty times that of a sword
In sophistication and humility
Rosa Parks, becoming the symbol of a decade
Refusing to obey the unwritten laws
Fearless before the social jaws
The lady with the lamp, the nurse of modern science
Translating a form of discrimination
From the unwanted sick to those of required favour
Dignifying their humanity, the future to savour
Audrey, a delicate symbol of class
A movie star but not made of glass
A frail body that travelled the globe
Giving and praying, in her princess robe
Women’s oppression as the second sex, by Simone de Beauvoir
Explaining existential feminism, the crime of civilization
Changing women from a natural spirit to the Other
From immanence to transcendence, an inferior brother
Mother Teresa, of saintly dignity and crown
A servant to the unfortunate, non- judgmentally chosen
Of free choice, my God, and out of love for you
I desire to remain and do whatever … I can do
A universal declaration of human rights
An early step in this giant project of international justice
Eleanor Roosevelt, “The First Lady of the World”
So kindly, she took us in her hand so furled
liberating women from the constraints, of corseted silhouette
sporty and chic, now the feminine display
and Coco prepared the woman for professional vocation
confusing men, of their questionable location
A suffragette of most aggressive guile
And the state of prisons, she spoke of in hunger
Emily Pankhurst, shaking society into a new fabric and mold
the stitches now stronger, with women in fold
Establishing her priority, for just recognition
Madame Curie, documenting with thorough efficiency
Fighting the race against her time
Often losing, the Panthéon in Paris, established her prime
“After Black Power,Women’s Liberation”
Gloria Steinem, A new voice for the times
"If Men Could Menstruate" she satirically coined
In a reversal role, of sexual purloin
DeaBeePea 3-8-17
I Wonder If
this would be better in hieroglyph
showing a comical tiff
with a feminine quiff
or the man's mighty biff
her cooking, he took sniff
a horrible whiff
he responded in a disrespectful riff
but maybe the girl was spiff
and flattened him stiff
and took him to sea
in a cedar strip skiff
it was either that
or over a cliff
she thought
what's the diff?
DeaBeePea 3-13-17

tiptoeing around
choosing in darkness
making a splash
in my strange aardvarkness
smelling my way
occasional bursts
of eloquent moves
sniffing for my firsts
so at this juncture
I can only laugh
at this innocent gent
performing his sclaff
but it was worth it all
this perilous journey
life is good
a long ways from gurney
DeaBeePea 3-13-17
the conflicts and issues
that dominated our time
are still around us
in their stubborn rhyme
new names perhaps
but just the same thing
man-made catastrophes
that I thought were a fling
it doesn't appear
that our capacity is adept
to solving these problems
as the solutions have slept
so homo sapien existence
appears to be in jeopardy
so my look at the future
is a wilting epergne
DeaBeePea 3-13-17
DeaBeePea 3-11-17
But there were no sour grapes
Because the game was a battle
And both teams fought
To the bitter end in a knot
DeaBeePea 3-11-17
thoughts of beauty
inspire my breath
as my dreams of paradise
take their seat
DeaBeePea 3-10-17
the gate-keepers place, a corn store
as we search for hidden shoes
placed to discourage the ghosts
and thwarting the grey ladies post
DeaBeePea 3-9-17
everywhere we went
people picked him up
so he traveled
near and far
DeaBeePea 3-14-17

stinking or putrid
and icky in texture
requiring solution
maybe a lecture
filling the air
with a nose-stuffing emanation
making you faint
needing much aeration
but hey, what about nice
that perfume effect
a bouquet of joy
for a pollinating insect
a luscious fragrance
enhancing your senses
feeling romantic
spreading amorous incenses
this my the odoriferous state
so much preferred
and that rancid idea
will be deferred
DeaBeePea 3-21-17
the level of integration
a very unique and vivid blend
a kind of "clashing peace"
so this in a nutshell
is a statement
and a centrepiece
taking chances and breaking trends
inspired by love
a gentle caprice
DeaBeePea 3-22-17
it's all I have
this inequitable fashion
as I sneakily probe
into one's emotional ration
but sooner or later
my downfall it will be
you see, these women of smart
this tendency they'll foresee
DeaBeePea 3-20-17
then these knee-jerk bastards
begin in earnest
to fight a war
of destruction
lives are lost
but they don't care
their power badge is worn
and they smile
and pretend to care
about the lives
of snookered dummies
and innocent pawns
.......................
aggression is our weakness
faltering through bloody time
ego and rhetoric
a poisonous climb
up these breaking rungs
a ladder to a trussless roof
will we ever learn
to defeat this disdainful spoof
DeaBeePea 3-20-17
open pit and sub-surface
this golden ore
passes through intermediaries
from its alluvium lore
the most important source of tin
these placer lees
complete with weathered grains
have the Congo on their knees
another character
in this bloody story of four
is that fierce and armored wolframite
that aims to settle the score
last but not least is coltan
a tantalizing tantalite
a vital computer element
that creates a world's benight
so I must summarize
this pathetic tale of greed
that these 3TG's of earth
should stay in the ground and seed
and our legacy of progress
should ultimately be redefined
so we can have a quality of life
appropriate for good mankind
DeaBeePea 3-18-17
but for a friend's security
I might try this ploy
keeping them insular
from accusations employ
so if you think I am a member
I cannot deny or confirm
for my life hangs in the balance
my position not affirmed
DeaBeePea 3-17-17