Where is the History of Women?

“I prefer the pen. There is something elemental about the glide and flow of nib and ink on paper.”
― James Robertson, The Testament of Gideon Mack

Paean*

praise for the paeans
flowing from a woman’s pen
that told their story

quietly they rail
assail anonymity
filling silent pages

pen in hand they stand
long lines of women through time
countless pages writ

journals letters more
words telling the history
men tend to omit
              © Perle Champion

 *Paean:  It comes from the Greek παιάν (also παιήων or παιών), "song of triumph..

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 So much of history is about men by men, but there is a rich history of women if one is willing to look.  It exists in journals, letters, and more.  So much has been lost or tossed as of no consequence.  And, some has been preserved for us if we know where to look. 

Southern History Room of Birmingham and the microfiche archives of the Linn Henley Library are rich with such histories.  To pluck any journal from a shelve and begin reading is like stepping back in time and experiencing a life lived.

I’ll be spending some more time there in the next few weeks as I have some research to do.  Birmingham has one of the best library systems I’ve encountered and I’ve known many. 

Note:Day 3 of NanoWriMo – Novel Wordcount is 8,449BlogHer Blog-a-Day challenge 3 for 3

V is for Veiled Vacuous Vistas

Day 22 of Blogging from A to Z.  Today’s letter is V 

V is for Veiled Vacuous Vistas

forcibly veiled ones
facing vacuous vistas
ancient sisters weep 

for the shroud you wear
fitting only to bury
ones who never lived

Men still use the ruse of ‘religiosity’ to force women to go veiled lest they, the men, be tempted to do them harm – what a sham.  Blame the murdered for inviting murder; the slave for inviting the noose…

Women have been and still are blamed for the crimes of men against them.  More rampant in the past in this country, but still with here and around the world is the blaming of women for enticing men to do them harm

I am always saddened when I see a veiled and shrouded woman walk by as the men young and old in her family walk free.

© Perle Champion

is for Praise of Penned Paeans

Day 16 of Blogging from A to Z.  Today’s letter is P

P is for Praise of Penned Paeans

praise for the paeans penned

by women through time gifting

us our history

© Perle Champion

Perusing the southern history room of Birmingham’s Linn Henley Library

downtown is an experience that I savor. 

The collection contains diaries, letters, photographs, financial records, news clippings, slave records and other materials documenting several generations of unembellished real life of the families that make these United States what they are today.

Much of the correspondence and journals were generated by the women of the family. It is here that we can fill in the blanks omitted as unimportant by the writers of our history books.

One quote that shines in my memory was from a young wife’s diary.  Long before MLK was born, she wrote, “Free at last, free at last – thank god I’m free at last.”  She wrote this on the day the first trolleys hit the streets of Birmingham.  Now she could go about her errands without waiting for her husband to drive her.  I kick myself daily for being in such a hurry that day that I did not write down her name or get a copy of the entry.  Turns out the diaries were on lone by a family and had been returned. Hindsight.