mothers and daughters

Today I am missing my mother. I removed myself from my mother's life by choice and it was the hardest thing I ever did. Sometimes I just want to see her smile at me or hug her. Unfortunately, it isn't that simple. I can't turn back time or make her change. It took many years to build up enough self-love to save myself.

The whole story is filled with craziness, deception and pain. Even though there are no villans in the tale, I don't usually talk about it because I am usually met with judgment. I chose to be selfish. I chose to love her from a distance. To some, that is an insult to one of the most sacred ideals, mothers and their daughters. You have no idea how it saddens me to understand that I can never have such a bond with my mother. To even ask that of her would be unfair, for she has no clue. Her mother was abusive (that's putting it kindly).

It is difficult, this path I have chosen. The little daughter in me wants nothing more than to please my mother, as I have tried to do for so many years. The woman in me understands that it is time to mother myself.

Bust a move...

HEEELLOOOO!!!

Once again and it is Friday! AND I cannot resist adding an interesting link for you ladies to peruse over the weekend!

(drum roll please)

And this week’s link is…..

BUST a website for women with something to get off their chests!

Tons of cool links, and AWESOME e-cards for a giggle… and for those enterprising, talented women a great place to add your website!

So my work here is done, enjoy ya’lls holiday and I will see you wonderful women on Tuesday!

fun webfinds

Via FunkyJunkie: The Switchboards

Via Cap'n Marrrrk: Blog Sisters

Via me: Blogher

Have a SARK filled weekend!

Hello!!!

Happy Day to everyone… I wanted to wish ya’ll a wonderful weekend and to let you know that:

May 10th was Planet SARK’s anniversary for the site. And what an awesome site it is, check it out if you want a lift in your spirits… that is what SARK always does for me.

I just wanted to pass along that they are offering FREE downloadable SARK wallpaper:)

Imagine a Woman

Imagine a woman who believes it is right and good she is a woman.
A woman who honors her experience and tells her stories.
Who refuses to carry the sins of others within her body and life.
Imagine a woman who believes she is good.
A woman who trusts and respects herself,
Who listens to her needs and desires,
And meets them with tenderness and grace.
Imagine a woman who has acknowledged the past's influence on the present.
A woman who has walked through her past,
Who has healed into the present. Imagine a woman who authors her own life.
A woman who exerts, initiates, and moves on her own behalf,
Who refuses to surrender except to her truest self and to her wisest voice.
Imagine a woman who names her own gods.
A woman who imagines the divine in her image and likeness,
Who designs her own spirituality and allows it to inform her daily life.
Imagine a woman in love with her own body.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is,
Who celebrates her body and its rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.
Imagine a woman who honors the face of the Goddess in her changing face.
A woman who celebrates the accumulation of her years and her wisdom,
Who refuses to use precious energy disguising the changes in her body and life.

Imagine a woman who values the women in her life.
A woman who sits in circles of women,
Who is reminded of the truth about herself when she forgets.
Imagine yourself as this woman.
~unknown~

What I thought I saw

Please go and enjoy some of the inspiring and wonderful work of Kelli Bickman on her site: 11:11 Studio.

See the pieces for sale: Demons and Deites

I'd love Kuan Yin. Or Superstar. Or any of them, really.

herstory

"WHETHER I RESENT THE WORLD OR GRIEVE OVER IT I DO NOT KNOW."
A quote by Shikishi Naishinno found at Other Women's Voices

Why friends? Another good reason.

Every few weeks, I receive an email from my mom pointing me toward a humor column printed in a local newspaper. I get a giggle & snort from it ... maybe you will, too ...

I waited in line for this?
By Dorothy Rosby, Special to the Journal

With all due respect to Mr. Freud, the only time women really envy
anything about men is while we're waiting in line at a public restroom.

Let's take a typical female: cheerful, optimistic, and carrying a very
large purse, a shopping bag, a jacket and an extra 10 pounds. While she waits in
line, she has an excellent view of the wide-open space in front of the men's
room. This is envy.

read more of me

perchance to meet.

I was driving home from work and had this thought ... "What if I happened to meet *soandso* from the blogiverse (or margaritaville as suburby prefers)?"

Somehow, I'm a part of this online community - through blogs, forums & flickr. These are people I share thoughts & ideas with - through email, blogs, comments & forums. So, how would a meeting over coffee (or tea!) go? Or, a phone call? Or, a spontaneous visit to *soandso's* house?

Would it be weird to hear a voice - to associate that w/ a blog & emails? Would it be awkward to talk in person about issues we've discussed through email? Would it be gratifying to put flesh & blood with the creativity I see unleashed online?

I wonder about these things.

My junior year in college, I met an online friend in person. She was taller than I expected. We had emailed lots and talked on the phone and then she decided to take a mini-road trip in her beater car so we could go to a rave-type party. She was a cool chica, but after that trip our emails & phone calls were sparse. But, I don't think it's because we didn't like each other ... I think it's because we did.