03/10/2024
A poem for National Poetry Day….
Women
Heidi lives in Tooting,
Beth, in Ross-On-Wye.
Mandy lives in Clacton,
Jax, in Rotherhithe.
Just four women, maybe,
but there are four, and then four more,
Who battle every day for what’s theirs and their alone.
Ali works at Pets at home,
Lynn works nine to five,
In an office job that’s not that much:
they do it to survive.
Liz works in M & S, Trudie’s self-employed,
Carrie’s in the NHS,
Syb’s an MDA studying a master’s in philosophy with the OU on Saturdays.
And every day, it’s more or less the same,
same gossip, same old news, same games they have to play.
But they really mustn’t grumble, they should take it in their stride,
for when it all comes down to it,
what’s a little bit of pride?
Well, and here’s the crunch, the bite,
the thing that gets my goat each time is that
we should all be grateful that what’s yours just isn’t mine,
I mean, we got the vote, we burnt our bras,
(not alas a choice for me)
we’ve got a living wage, we’ve a voice, a choice, you see.
But who’s to say the choice is mine?
who’s to say that I can speak?
For I really mustn’t grumble,
I should be a little meek.
I’ve had my share of bullies,
had my share of being shut down,
I’ve had it up to here, and more,
of being told I can’t do that, well, watch me as I roar.
I’m on the cusp of life changes, in my body, in my mind and in the world,
I’m not a girlie girl, but I rather like my curls.
But when I’m told “be grateful”
Should I answer, “grateful for what?”
or should I just agree, I mean, look at what this world has given me!
Tell you what, when you keep poking me with that tired old stick,
I’ll find my voice and tell you that you’re…
positively thick.
My mental health means more to me,
even when my strength seems dim,
it doesn’t mean that I am weak, for there is power within that you don’t even know of,
so, cross my path, that’s fine,
But, if you look behind me,
you’ll see there’s quite a line
of woman, more than you can count,
who’ll gladly push you aside,
You think we’re weak?
You think we’ll go away?
We’ve only just hit our stride.
