The Wild Honey Buzz: Keeping Hope Alive in 2025, May Edition: Nature, Art and Mother's Day in America
- Wild Honey Blogger
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
Greetings to all during this lovely month of May with its abundance of blooms, at least here in the Northern Hemisphere. I have been gathering lilacs, planting the garden, touring other gardens, pulling weeds and cleaning up at my local nature preserve, and soaking in the splendor of nature! I've also been surrounded by beautiful art and celebrating the work of my artist friends who have shows. And there is always, always poetry! I am thrilled to share that two of my poems are included in Issue 14 of the Book of Matches Literary Journal (pages 96 and 102). They are part of a new book of travel themed poems I am working on. I am deeply grateful to the editors of Book of Matches for welcoming these two poems into this incredible issue! The poem, "Icebergs Born 2009 - 2024" is timely for Mother's Day as it addresses motherhood and birthing.
I just finished reading Sandra Marchetti's new book of poems, "Diorama." I even took it to the beach and recommend it as a great addition to your summer reading list. Here is my review of Diorama:
Lovers of music and sound will especially delight in Sandra Marchetti’s newest collection of poems, Diorama, as will those who appreciate beautifully drawn images. Marchetti crafts the scenes in these poems much like a set designer would construct a diorama for a movie, allowing the reader to enter fully into the memorable world she creates. One can smell the lilacs in “Dream Only,” feel the loneliness in “Satellite,” taste the sugar in “County Donuts” and be “suffocated by the sweet of it” as she writes in “Breathe.” It is a delight to witness how this literary diorama “assembles itself” and how vividly the scene for the reader “runs true.”
It is surreal to be immersed in so much natural beauty and art and surrounded by friends and family and so much love in my personal life while witnessing the United States descend into fascism and dictatorship and millions suffering as a result. I continue to participate in the resistance movement by attending protests, calling my representatives, staying informed, boycotting anti-democratic businesses, helping in my community, contributing to mutual aid organizations and praying for liberty and justice for all. When we were en route to the May Day protests, my husband remarked, "This is like a full time job!" Indeed it is very time consuming but I'm inspired by those who fought hard battles in the past to secure freedom, thinking in particular of the Birmingham Bus Boycott which lasted 382 days, and of my father who suffered countless days on the battlefields in WWII, along with many many others who've gone before us. I'm also inspired, encouraged and uplifted by all the good people currently rising up in opposition to authoritarianism and grateful for the small victories we have achieved.
One of the events I participated in was a Prayer Walk (about 3.5 miles) in solidarity with Indigenous peoples (our local Coast Salish tribes and Indigenous immigrants from Central America). The prayer walk included Indigenous prayers, dancing and music and a very moving water ceremony at Salmon Bay in Seattle.
I am sharing this blog on the eve of Mother's Day during a time when mothers in the United States are under attack on many fronts, from dying during childbirth due to abortion bans to being kidnapped and seeing their children kidnapped and deported without due process to other countries. Not to mention the defunding of programs that support struggling mothers of young children. The denial of reproductive rights, healthcare, childcare, paid leave, affordable housing and equal pay and the destroying of education is as Pastor John Pavlovitz so perfectly states in this article, saying "To Hell With Mothers," and it is shameful.
A frightening statistic (and nothing "pro-life" about it):
Please know that if you are feeling less than well adjusted due to the state of things lately that it's a sign you are a compassionate and healthy human being. I love this quote by Jiddu Krishnamurti:
"It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society."
These are challenging times but "the power of the people is greater than the people in power" and I trust that we the people can persevere and overcome. When I attend the protests, I bring my greatest gifts to share - my enthusiasm and joy. I bring my big mouth, my laughter, my tambourine, and I have myself some FUN! I plan to participate in the protest on June 6 in support of Veterans, and there will be a BIG nationwide protest on June 14 which is No Kings Day (it also happens to be my 39th Wedding Anniversary!) It's also recommended that we all post photos of Obama and Kamala on all of our social media sites on June 14, because it just happens to be the wannabe king's birthday, and we know how much he loves Obama and Kamala, ha!
With love, hope and tenacious joy,
Marianne, aka Wild Honey
Photos:
