International Women’s Day: A Poetry, a Sister

To my Sister, the dear one who listens to me
Rise on those wings that spread out above you
The wings that clamped you down in one space, even as you writhe in pain, underneath its grueling weight

Your eyes are dim, greyed by years of endurance, pain and hardship
The claws, long, sharp and forceful, bite through your skin, and into your soul
How can you get out and fly? You ask
Who breaks the wings of a century old eagle? That great one that towers over feminity, gripping, stifling, and crushing her in fury?

But you can; there’s a strength that lies within you, Sister
A force that none had foreseen by any stretch of imagination
This is yours, Sister; this battle, this victory, this song

The wind beneath those wings is yours
Trapped by the weight of numerous sorrows and the worries of the world
It is your wind, and you must triumph in it
But first, you must lift yourself up
Allow your heart to speak
Let it tell you of the strength that lies within you, the force that nature has put in you.

So, my dear Sister, rise to this call, push out those wings, beat them underneath your arms
And rise on those wings that spread out above you!

©Oreka Titi Akerejola
8/03/2024