I celebrate myself and sing myself
And what I assume, you shall assume
When I am born in the hot summer air
You shall be too
You shall be me, and I, you,
And we shall be each other.
I am the tigress in the woods
Fierce and strong, and also hungry
I wait patiently for my prey
And then leap
I am the proud Indian woman
Dancing round the native fire
I celebrate my heritage
By twirling, swirling and leaping over the fire
I am the shriveled girl in the corner
Crying as he zips up
I am that same girl all grown up
As she fights for what she has lost
And for others like her all over the world.
I am the dancer on the stage
Expressing my every emotion
With plies, pirouettes, and
High flying kicks and leaps
I celebrate life for all it is
For the air time and the ground time
The low valley and hill time
I celebrate life for all its eternality
I celebrate the woman
Trembling in the dark
Weak from withdrawal
Her baby cries and she goes to him
And whispers, in her voice
Cracked and jagged from the
late night screams, I do this for you.
I celebrate the lioness
Proud and Quick in her stride
As she hunts to feed her family
For her counterpart lacks
I celebrate the woman in black
Her tear stained cheeks
Her Kleenex ravaged nose
As she plants her husband in the ground
And rests her hand on her bulging middle
The circle of life complete
I celebrate the grandmother
Her tears as she fights
For what is right for her grandson
When she meant to be angry
And Yell and SCREAM!
I exalt her in my mind
She who is often scorned
And I love her.
I celebrate womanhood
In all its glory
And then I look to Man
I see the father protecting
His family in the
only way he knows how
And even though he is distant
I recognize his love
In those shining green eyes
As he reaches for his gun
I watch the husband as he embraces his old wife
And I see for a moment,
As he forgets his age
And hold her like he did
That first night, ageless.
I think I shall never forget that sight
I observe the man trying to prove
His worth, his manhood, his strength
And I mourn for his ego
As he loses the fight
But he loses like a man and therefore wins.
I celebrate humanity
The woman and the man
The infant and the teen
For life in all its splendor
Is all the best that we can do.
I celebrate birth and death
And that dash of in-between that
encompasses more than words can say.
