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TWINKLING STARS

(Dedicated to Joan Rebecca Coursey)

In the Origin of articulated history, the Divine

Designer

gathered rich, dark, bittersweet chocolate, and

mixed it with love,

intelligence, and dynamism, to fashion the Black

Woman.

The entire human race issued forth from her

abundant womb.

The Creator watched her production and declared,

“Very good!”

A palatial garden in Africa was the worlds first

home. And, with amazing

accuracy, our mother named the world. Gifted with a

sharp mind,

keen intellect, and unbelievably perceptive wit, Eve

was curious, intuitive, and inquisitive.

For a Woman of Color was the earliest navigator

and explorer, since brilliance

always seeks to enlarge her capacity and to expand

her potential.

Eve was a seeker of truth, a delighter in beauty, and

wise beyond belief.

She negotiated with evil principalities, pushed past

her boundaries,

and sought to include all of humankind as she

worked on issues of justice.

Other Black Women, like her, have been assigned

to the culture of the unheard.

condemned to the society of the unseen, and

banished to the continent of invisibility.

Yet, they have continued their explorations,

unnoticed and unheralded by the world.

Silently, they have hummed simple songs, engaging

the Mystery of Life.

Quietly, they have twinkled in their places and the

Divine has never

left them alone. The Ancient of Days has preserved

their souls.

And the Holy Spirits power has caused their

brilliance to touch every life.

Definitions cannot contain them. Imposed

limitations cannot imprison them.

Black Women were created to reign!

The royal blood of creation pulsates in their veins.

The thirst for knowledge

rules in their hearts. They will not sacrifice their

heritage.

Their stories will live on!

Proud progeny of Africa, we are daughters,

mothers, sisters, wives,

divorced, single, gay, and straight. We are

preachers,

teachers, engineers, actors, construction workers

too. We are

students, learners, and plain, good, Black Women!

We are Sistahs,

honey childs, and Sweet Honey in the Rock! We

are kin to Zipporah,

Hagar, and the Candace of Ethiopia. Created to

rule, we have been forced to serve.

We have served Creation well!

With queenly bearing and the dignity of sacred

saints, we have offered

our best. Our breasts have nourished the world.

The hands of

Black Women have rocked the cradles of the most

powerful and the least significant.

The songs of Black Women have changed the

most recalcitrant hearts.

Only the ledgers of time without end will detail

the exploits

of Black Women. For these daughters of dark

earth continue to

call us to shine. Our eyes are on the prize. Never

will our heads be bowed.

Our salvation is assured. Our names are written

on high!

So, “Twinkle, twinkle, little stars,” our God knows

who we really are!

We are some beautiful, bad, and bodacious women!

Linda H. Hollies

August 1997

United Methodist Clergywomen’s Consultation