Dear Friends, Poets and Sister Crones,
Full Moon Blessings! Every year, for as long as I can remember, I write a “birthday” poem. Here’s this year’s offering, inspired by the events of last week, where I pay homage to Maya Angelou’s renowned poem “Still I Rise” and what I lovingly refer to as Eagle Woman’s spirit, resilience and majesty!
“And Still We Rise”
Last week the music stopped on a note
we never anticipated,
leaving us to circle the skies and reflect.
In silence we heard Eagle Woman whisper
resilience is your birthright,
as she gently urged us to rise again.
Guiding us back to our pens and strength,
to learn more about the Eternal cycle
of life, death and rebirth.
To understand we have no choice today
other than to rise from the gravity
of our disappointment.
To find our wings and fly higher
in these shifting seasons, where
women’s hope is turning history’s pages.
So let us rise not in rage and failure
but with the spirit, resilience and majesty
that longs to soar to great heights.
And in this rising may we find
that the music never truly stopped,
it was waiting for us to create the next note.
© Deborah Gregory 2024
Art: ‘Eagle Woman’ by Susan Seddon Boulet
Dear Deborah, I’m just seeing this and sending you belated birthday wishes!
I’m deeply moved by your stunning birthday poem. Some years ago I dreamed of two mating eagles whirling together in beautiful sky dance. Having read your new birthday poem, from now on I shall always think of them as Eagle Woman and Eagle Man sending me this message:
“Resilience is your birthright.
Find your wings and fly higher.
Create the next note and sing louder.”
It feels like a prayer.
Love, Jeanie
Dear Jeanie,
Many thanks for your lovely birthday wishes! Wow, what an incredible dream, “The Soul’s Twins” comes to mind with the Divine Feminine and Divine Masculine in their beautiful dance together. And the fact that they were ‘mating’ eagles surely symbolises the merging of souls and coming together as one.
I’m realising that it can take many years to understand a dream, but eventually, we will. I did this myself following a series of dragonfly dreams I had during my childhood, where eventually, decades later, I found myself as a newly qualified psychotherapist working in a children’s centre named, wait for it, Dragonflies.
In the words and wisdom of Shakespeare, “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.”
Love and light, Deborah
We arrived in Johannesburg yesterday afternoon after driving through the Karoo and overnighting Friday at our usual bnb. A working farm. Seeing such beauty in the starkness of the land and mountains, and the sense of eternity, brings home to me ongoing changes in real time. There’s always the eternal backdrop. Somehow, it’s calming to me.
Believe me, we have unbelievable ongoing political nonsense here in SA. America will be great again. I sense a shift in the collective unconscious, a willingness to confront past injustices to eg the Native American – and towards the ordinary man and woman. Wrongs will be righted. Women will aid and abet in this.
The music hasn’t died – new tones and sounds, new vibrations are ever emerging. New risings from all quarters.
Love to you Deborah, Susan
Ps I clearly missed your birthday! Happy birthday dear friend and here’s to many more, giving birth to more poetry that gifts the soul of the reader –
Blessed birthday Deborah ❤️❤️❤️
Aww, many thanks my dear friend! Lol, as I like to celebrate for the entire month of November, I reckon that I still have two weeks to go! Yes, back to “Croneology” and writing new poems I must go now! Big love! ❤️❤️❤️
Dear Susan, wow, the route you took to reach Johannesburg sounds picturesque! I’ve just googled the Karoo National Park and marvelled at the spectacular views and endless horizons. Oh, I love how you’ve described its ‘eternal backdrop’. I’ll think about this rich description next time I’m driving or walking through similar terrain or what I lovingly call, ‘the poetic landscape of the soul’. In the UK the beautiful Lake District comes to mind!
Hmm, due to the ongoing anxiety producing updates of wars, riots, terrorism, murder and other forms of violence happening both locally and globally every day, I often choose to avoid watching distressing news programmes. As a result, I haven’t been following the political events beyond America in the past week. I’m sorry things are still such a mess for South Africa.
I agree with your perception of a change in awareness and a willingness to address historical wrongs. When I look through my Jungian lens I see that there is a necessity for the world to embark on an ‘Animus Diet’ in order to find balance between their feminine and masculine aspects. Never before has there been such a need for this balance, both individually and collectively. Maybe it’s time to upload my books to Amazon!
Following my own ‘musical’ pause last week, there are indeed new tones, sounds and vibrations rising, no doubt about it! Reminds me of what happens when I’m working with couples in therapy, where initially we must acknowledge that their previous relationship has ended in order to start a new one and facilitate deeper healing. As always, thank you so much Susan for widening my lens on everything! Love and light, Deborah.
Happy Birthday, Deborah!
Thank you for this! Music has always filled my heart and mind with inspiration when I’ve needed it. So, the idea that the next note is ours to compose is an anchor to my intention to rise along with like-minded sisters and brothers (yes, eagles) above the clouds and darkness to witness the sun still shining and to bring that light back to earth to share with the world (as you did with this phenomenal poem).
May this coming year bring you joy and more blessings than you could ever imagine.
Love, Jenna
Thank you so much Jenna for the gift of your love, birthday wishes and wisdom! Please know that your lovely, poetic reply has lifted my soul high like the eagles soar! Never stop writing my dear friend! Here in the UK it’s nearly 7am and I’ve been gazing at Mother Moon in Her full glory as She holds centre court in this pre-dawn sky. To Her left, and higher, Venus shines brightly!
Last week, when my ‘song’ was interrupted (as all songs are) and ‘the music died’, I knew that I wasn’t alone in feeling so wretched and disappointed about your election result. I drifted for days until I finally realised that the next ‘note’ was mine alone to create. In the reaching for my pen, my resilience returned yesterday, and thankfully the next note, this poem “And Still We Rise”, arrived.
Maya’s renowned poem has always been a blessing to me, but this week I felt like I truly grasped her concept of ‘rising’. To harness the power of the winds and soar above those shadows by embodying the spirit, resilience and majesty of Susan’s ‘Eagle Woman’ and as you so rightly say, sharing that same light with others. I look forward to your own pen rising again! Love and light, Deborah.
Dear Poet of the Moon,
The moon was full last night and I had a lovely dinner cooked mostly by my son who knows I’m shaken by what is happening here. He’s shaken, too. I anticipated DTs rage, but it’s more aggressive and lethal than I imagined. I’m waiting for a resistance to organize, but feel the limits of my age and Meniere’s Disease.
In the past, I moved quickly through the weaponry and blood-thirsty exhibits of the Iron Age (1200 BC to 800 BC or later) in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, near the much larger beautiful Egyptian exhibits. I didn’t want to dwell in the time of the killing of the Goddess Tiamat when the gods took all the powers. I fear we were working through that same archetype again, so I may take up my pen to write about chariots and weapons. I don’t want to, but a post-election dream of Marion Woodman inspires me to look at the archetypal and mythological significance of this time. Pen in hand, as you say. Your poem is beautiful and full of the hope I’m having a hard time contacting, but yes! We will rise and DT is not immortal.
Thank you for inspiration and I’m grateful you had a joyful birthday. ‘All will be well, and all will be well and all manner of things will be well.’ ~Julian of Norwich. Sending love as we join together in renewal and hope. Blessings and gratitude, Elaine
Dear Elaine, my beloved American Eagle Woman,
Oh, what indescribable joy it is to be thought of as your ‘Poet of the Moon’!
Re the ‘tyrant in a toupee’, I didn’t think I would feel half as shaken up as I do because I’m British and live in the UK, yet here I am feeling disorientated as I also worry about what will happen next year when he takes office. For the past week I’ve struggled to focus on anything much until yesterday when I finally sat down to write this ‘birthday’ poem and compose my ‘next note’!
I don’t want to dwell in darkness any longer as it’s been such a hard year, in other ways. I’m hoping that this ‘rising’ which Maya inspires in both women and men keeps growing, worldwide too. Ahh, reaching for my pen has always been my way of resisting. So I look forward to hearing more about your ‘Dream Marion’ riding her chariot (lol, in my dreams!) and your ‘rising’ pen in the days to come!
The hopeful and inspiring words of saint Julian of Norwich never lose their impact do they?! Thank you so much for your love-filled birthday greetings my dear friend. Last night we thoroughly enjoyed watching Pedro Almodóvar’s latest film, “The Room Next Door”. He’s our favourite director and didn’t disappoint!
Sending you much love and light across the oceans and oak tops between us, Deborah.
This is such a strong, uplifting poem Deborah, brimming with full moon energy. I can feel the power of its words stirring inside and love the positive message it brings after such tumultuous times in recent weeks – that the music hasn’t stopped, all we need to do is take the next step forward on our path. Hope that you had a lovely birthday. Full moon blessings, Sophia
Thank you so much Sophia for your wonderful comment! I love your poetic description of ‘brimming with full moon energy’. Yes, these are tumultuous times! No, the music didn’t stop completely … thank goodness, but it did pause for a few days until I felt ready to rise and reach for my pen. Susan Seddon Boulet’s ‘Eagle Woman’ brings the archetypal Crone to mind! Love and light, Deborah.
My dear angel, Happy Birthday to you! I hope you had a great time yesterday. Thank you again for sharing this profound poem by Maya Angelou: Still, we rise, the femininity will rise, and doesn’t need any help from some idiot masculine! Love and Freedom.
Oh Aladin, apologies if I didn’t make myself clear! I wrote this poem yesterday, inspired by Maya’s famous poem “Still I Rise” and of course Susan’s beautiful “Eagle Woman” art. I’m hoping to include this poem (one of sixty!) in my new book “Croneology” next year. Many thanks for your lovely birthday wishes. Yes, my dear friend, I had a wonderful time! Love and light, Deborah.
Ouch! I am an idiot!! Honestly, I didn’t read the poem because I blindly assumed it was the poem from Maya, which you shared before. It seems all the stress around me has already overtaxed me! Now I read it and regard your power in poetry. I am ashamed.
Thank you so much Aladin for your lovely feedback! Lol, I’m delighted that you assumed my poem was Maya’s, what a compliment! Yes, of course, I shared her poem last week … now it makes sense! x
Of course, my modest friend. You have the power to create an image with winged rhythm and poetic rhyme; if I may say so, that is poetry!
Many thanks my lovely friend! x