Monthly Archives: March 2015

National Women’s History Month

Few people sit down to a table at a café. They talk about the CERN LHC (Large Hadron Collider), the discovery of the Higgs Boson, the Standard model and how great it is that the LHC will reopen for experiments. Clearly, this group has interest and knowledge in science.

The radio plays some music in the background. Then the music stops, and the radio host introduces the National Women’s History Month subject.
“Do you know when National Women’s History Month is celebrated?” asks the radio host.
“March,” answers the group in one voice. They have a great time, and they are not shy to express their knowledge out loud.

The radio host is preparing to ask a more challenging question. The group is ready, always welcoming a challenge.
“Could you name two American women scientists?” asks the radio host.
“Marie Curie,” answers someone. “No, Polish-born French scientist,” says someone else. Then … silence. Complete silence. None of them could name one American woman scientist.

This is common. Polls say that few people can name one famous woman scientist. National Women’s History Month creates awareness and highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society.
I hope this awareness will fuel our curiosity to better understand the contributions of women throughout history and their fascinating stories.

A mother’s words to her newborn child

Today I care less about sunrise and sunset,
I care less about the flow of time,
Because of you, my newborn baby,
A universe with different rules –I obey them all.

I’m intimidated by your fragility,
Your head and neck need so much support,
I drive differently with you in the car,
Always the question: How can I be sure you’re secure?

I babble, sing and make strange vocal sounds,
Things I thought of a little before you,
Bonding with you, building a bridge never to collapse,
Kept strong by my unconditional love for you.

Your bowel movements, I witness them all,
I change your diaper after each one,
Quickly to close on the diaper rush concern,
And have you happy, my sweet child.

Bathing you, watching you constantly,
Making sure the water is not too hot or not too cold,
Gently massaging your tiny scalp,
Yes, my little one, you are my universe.

Feeding you is such a peaceful window,
A quiet space, an intimacy that I will lose in time–I know so much,
I look deeply into your eyes, a rare opportunity of the present
To find my meaning.

The sound of your burping,
Eagerly awaited by my senses,
Triggers a satisfaction and liveliness today,
A memory tomorrow forever remembered.

At bedtime, I place you on your back, and remove
All the fluffy bedding and stuffed animals from the crib,
I change the position of your head from the previous night,
I sing you a lullaby, words coming from my heart.

During the night you seem to need me every minute,
Your digestive system is so small,
I feed you, sing to you, and treasure every moment,
I know few months from now you’ll sleep through the night on your own.

If I could start from the beginning,
I would ride the same roads,
I would fly through the same clouds,
Only to be with you again.

Life is a song played on an instrument
Without a rewind button,
But with you I can regain the past through my memories,
Feel the present, and dream your future my child.

When winter enters my soul,
You are the reason that brings spring back to me,
You are the reason to believe again,
You are me.

Words turned into stone

The song’s lyrics :

Words turned into stone
Words turned into stone
Words turned into stone
Words turned into stone

A weight added to your soul and mind
A weight added to your body and face
A weight added to your time and space
A weight added to your window of life

The stone is carried all the time
The stone is walked all the way
The stone is always kept alive
The stone is never put aside

I wish to go back and shut my mouth
I wish to go back and freeze my thoughts
I wish to go back and end my words
I wish to go back and stop them all

Assumptions swallowed into beliefs
Beliefs molded into thoughts
Thoughts shifted into words
Words turned into stone

Honeymoon Poem

Break the habit of worry, pause on tenderness and pleasure
Feel the euphoria released by wild endorphins
Taste the nervous vibration of the skin
And hold on the sense of excitement, focus and purpose
Are you a student of joy?

Space is shrinking, pushing closer and closer
A world, a universe, a moon only for you
Closer and closer, it weakens the meaningful sense of two
The traces of duality are washed away
Does one plus one equal two today?

Words are spoken, then whispered, then lost
The look into each other’s eyes, the movement of the body, and the gestures
Faultless way of communicating and understanding
The language of the human soul, the resonating music
Can you hear the silenced words?

Two bodies embracing in the shadow of the future
Dancing on forgotten songs of an ancient fiddler
The planet is moving with you, the stars are dancing with you
A vibrating drop of fluid physicality against the gravity
Who dares to stop it?