Bear 248

Meet Emily, knitted in honor of an Unimportant Woman in Victoria, Canada

An Unimportant Woman - Emily, Victoria, Canada

She walks along the waterfront, a temporary shelter

For Emily and her group of aimless artisans,

The girl stands strong in body and in soul,

But fate is not in favor of acceptance.

Emily was once a man,

Now she roams the busy streets around Victoria's harbor,

singing songs of love and everlasting peace,

Resisting stabs and punches with determined hope.

"It gets better" is her daily slogan.

As teatime draws the crowds away

She pulls needles from her backpack, sits quietly and smiles.

"They wage wars and I knit teddy bears."

Bear 247

Meet Rahil, knitted in honor of an Unimportant Woman in Marrakesh, Morocco

An Unimportant Woman - Rahil, Marrakesh, Morocco

She moves her veil to kiss the boy,

Blessing him with motherly devotion.

The medina's narrow alleyways

Echo with a call to prayer.

Ensha'llah - all will be well with father.

Rahil must stay and sell their wares

Enshrined in white from head to toe

She offers rings and bracelets, barters with admirers.

They do not know about the old man's bravery;

He rescued strangers from the rubble of Argana

When terrorists destroyed the famous Marrakesh Café.

The boy is sleeping now; midday heat has slowed the tourists' greed for souvenirs.

Rahil picks up silken yarn and bamboo needles.

"They wage wars and I knit teddy bears."

Bear 246

Meet Eleesh, knitted in honor of an Unimportant Woman in Nine Mile, Jamaica

An Unimportant Woman - Eleesh, Nine Mile, Jamaica

Eleesh stands by the wayside,

Waiting, waiting, waiting,

Waiting for a bus to Nine Mile.

Insufficient funds, gang wars, sleepy drivers, robberies,

Her ride depends on luck, good will, and promises.

Mother waits for her arrival,

A man had mutilated her

When she was young and bold and desperate,

And sold herself for daily bread and minor favors.

Eleesh can't remember singing songs

Or dancing in the moonlight;

She must bathe her mother, feed her sisters, pay the bills.

But when raindrops pelt the metal roof

Eleesh becomes an artist with her needles.

She cables, purls, makes toys from snips and snatches,

Ignores the outside world's discord.

"They wage wars and I knit teddy bears."

Bear 245

Meet Alexandra, dedicated to an "Unimportant Woman" in Weimar, Germany

“Education, Tolerance, Acceptance

Are key ingredients for a peaceful coexistence.”

So teachers preach in Germany’s historic Weimar.

Alexandra shields her bruised and swollen face

From parents who celebrate their racial difference.

But skinhead bullies who attacked her in the schoolyard

Knew no restraint and had no patience for the girl with darker skin.

Alexandra slips into the privacy of blue and sunshine yellow linen.

Hides her pain between the sweetly scented pillows on her bed.

Cries into the furry safety of a childhood bunny friend.

When all the tears have left her tender body,

She finds a skein of unbleached cotton and winds a giant ball.

A cautious smile attends the fast, ambitious circles of her hand.

“They wage wars and I knit teddy bears.”

Bear 244

Meet Ting-ting, knitted in honor of an Unimportant Woman in Souzhou, China

 

 

An Unimportant Woman – Ting-ting,  Souzhou, China

Hazy sunlight filters through the Garden of the Master of the Fishing Nets;

Ting-ting strokes her growing belly.

The child will soon be born - without a father;

He enlists the arts to fight his government’s oppression.

“China is our home,” he said, as they tied his wrists and took him from her.

“Don’t let them scare you to submission.”

Helplessly the future mother strolls amid the beauty of the Souzhou gardens,

Admiring stunted trees, inhaling sweetness from their dazzling blossoms.

Her restless hands search through the shopping bag,

Seeking respite in the tangles of the yarn she bought.

In silent vigil for the man she loves she bows before a jaded Buddha.

“They wage wars, and I knit teddy bears.”

Bear 243

Meet Nathifa - knitted in honor of an Unimportant Woman in Cairo, Egypt

An Unimportant Woman – Nathifa, Cairo

When Nathifa shuts her eyes to sleep

She relives the nightmare they called fight for freedom

She sees her brother - breathless. Dead on Cairo’s Tahrir Square.

The radiant, brilliant scholar of antiquities

Sacrificed his body to their dreams of democratic bliss.

Nathifa twists and turns and tries to push away

The images of agony - familial bonds denied forever,

Replaces them with skeins of brightly colored yarn,

Imagines finished toys, packed and shipped to sub-Saharan Africa,

Where other soldiers fight the endless fight.

The thought of giving joy becomes a soothing pillow.

“They wage wars and I knit teddy bears.”

Bear 242

Meet Polyanthe - in honor of an Unimportant Woman in Santorini, Greece

An Unimportant Woman – Polyanthe, Santorini

Trapped between blue walls and Aegean travel posters

She slides out of high-heeled shoes into the comfort of a sandal

Behind the counter in her Santorini knick-knack store.

Polyanthe waits impatiently to shut the doors

Behind the crowd of shoppaholics.

But then a fight erupts and screaming men pour from a tavern

Too much ouzo rakes the coals of conversation

Between frenzied sports fanatics of opposing teams.

Oh well, the tired Polyanthe turns the key and leaves.

Walks home, makes supper for her family,

Sits down with wool and pattern.

And smiles in anticipation.

“They wage wars and I knit teddy bears.”