In honor of WOMYN~

In honor of WOMYN’s Month~

Last Saturday I held an all day writers workshop at Brooklyn College. The women wrote from 10:00am until 5:30pm. It was productive, intense, emotional, overwhelming, powerful, enlightening, fulfilling, filled with laughs and tears, educational, fun, informative, and spiritual. Bonds were formed~

Vanessa, one of the writers from the group (my dear friend and a woman who has become a sister to me) co-moderated the all day session with me and opened with:

"Did you know that March is Women’s History Month?"

Then she went one better and informed us that Saturday, March 8th, was International Women’s Day.

Needless to say, we were under some pressure to produce…

These workshops are incredibly special to me - - there is a story that each of us HAS to tell… the women in the NYC Latina Writers group are amazing each with a powerful story they MUST tell… a story that is bigger than us… and what a special day for us to honor the many women who have paved the way for us by spending it together sharing, growing, writing & creating.

Which brings me to Vanessa’s writing prompt: "How do you feel about being a woman?"

So I wrote…

How do I feel about being a woman~
What does being a woman mean to me~


It’s funny for a long time I didn’t really care about being a woman. I saw it as such a crutch. I preferred to be a tomboy because I wasn’t going to be taking sh*& from everyone/anyone and lets face it - - the woman’s programming - - or at least how I came to see it in a Latin household was that to be a woman—well….

To be a woman meant I had NO VOICE… and needed to know my place…

To be a woman was to be discriminated against…

To be a woman of color - - a double wammy…

And for the woman in me today… well I am about to embark on another journey about what being a woman is…means…should be…

But when I can remove the mask placed on my head by my parents, family, religion, society, and media and decide for myself what being a woman truly means to me…

I can honestly say that today - - I see it as a blessing…

A blessing that gave me Courtney - - my greatest gift to the world~

A woman is power - - gives life – provides – nurtures and protects…

When I think about me as a woman - - I can not separate me as a lion protecting my cubs - - the lion who hunts and gathers - - the lion who is loyal - - but will kill you if you dare fuck with her or her family~ but gentle and tender – regal - supreme royalty – a queen - - a queen always in the making.

We are ALL queens on a tremendous journey.

A woman is a gift - - people don’t really know… remix… they DO KNOW how powerful we are - - which is why they want to take it away from us - - keep us down – to control us – drain us… as my sister Gloria says - - they will try to ZAP it right out of me…

What I love about being a woman is our ability to dig deep.

Our intuition is an incredible gift – it’s our greatest gift. We have this ability to tap into a source that some will never reach.

When I think of the word woman – I see in it wonderful things – potential for greatness – strength – endurance – faith – softness - love – honor – truth – respect – vulnerability - tranquility – rage – power – peace – the ability to hold it down… an abundance of LOVE~

While I think of all the wonderful things about being a woman I also see and acknowledge that what WE… that being a woman we are forced to endure a tremendous amount of pain - - a pain that can paralyze us if we don’t allow ourselves to honor who we are and heal the wounds of our past or present. And how we as womyn must release all of the poison inside us~

To change the ideas of:

Woman - - the internalizer…

Replaced with:

Woman - - the releaser…

When we as women can truly see the power, gifts and blessings that we bring… that blessings that WE ARE - - only then will we realize that we are unstoppable. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for~

I love being a womyn! Peace~

Today I can look back and say that being a woman truly does come from modeling…

Who our role models are? And it’s about knowing our WORTH.

I think that might be one of my biggest regrets or wishes - - me wishing I would have known my worth a lot sooner than later on in life… or wishing that I would’ve been taught how to find my worth. But I guess that’s the but I guess that’s the lesson in the end… no one really could give me my worth… only I could give it to me… only I could learn that…

Women inspire…
Women teach…
Women love…
Women endure…
Women heal…
Women fight…
Women are greatness and beauty~

The women I celebrate this month and every month:

Mi madre Carmen Alicia Anabel
Mi hija Courtniana
Lulu
Josie
Fabiana
Ely
Aurora
Lindsey
Emma L.
Jaz
Eneida
Emma
Kelly
Mayra
Vanessa
Natasha
Georgina
Marta
Adelina
NYCLWG
My aunts
My grandmothers
My ancestors
Fem activists
Fem educators
Fem artists
Fem revolutionaries
Fem writers
Fem entertainers
Fem athletes

To all the womyn in my life, all the womyn I’ve met, all the womyn before me, all the womyn who have touched my life and inspired me - - I honor you~

Do you know your worth?
How do you feel about being a woman?
To the men: How do you feel about the woman in your life?


Peace~