I come by my radical feminism
honestly
as scrupulously as can a
middle-aged guy like me

I come from a long line of
strong women
immigrants
occupation resistors
pogrom survivors
Great Depression
scrappers and savers
who made do
and much more

blue-collar unionists
organizers
women who didn’t back down
office workers
outside-the-homers
when that supposedly
was not ‘the norm’

One, my mother’s aunt
a suffragette
clear sense, fifty years
removed from the fight
to vote
how the battle still raged

honest in that her status
wife of a doctor
afforded her a bit more
leeway
than many peers
she fought, led the charge
when needed

She always conveyed
inordinate sense
not-boastful dignity, pride
granted same to those
probably
far less deserving

instilling in subsequent
generations
clear ideas about forging
one’s own path
with the worth and dignity
of others
always at the forefront

As a teen I was enthralled by
her storytelling
the resolve of others
sharing what she had fought for
occasionally punctuating a
key point with a sharp ‘thump’
of her ever-present cane

it was the 70s
Women’s Lib buzzwords
were of less interest than real
action, in-the-streets
visibility, protests
all still intrigued her
bra-burning bemused her
streets full of people
marching shoulder-to-shoulder
still a turn-on

always reminding her daughters
and my mother
plus shirttail-nephew me too
not to let their guard down
keep fighting
wherever, whenever

I am nearly
fifty years removed from
those days of being awed by
aunt Maybelle
regaled by tales
each fascinating, each with
a solid moral
life lessons
earned not learned

Schooled, I was
in every sense
firsthand, no less
by a woman who had
seen much
did something about it
whenever she could
nudging me in
similar directions

aunt Maybelle
instilled in me a sense of
responsibility
didn’t let me off the hook
just for being a boy
long before
male accountability
was truly fashionable

My kids
daughter, two sons
now grown
never met aunt Maybelle
but I see her in them

involved activists, in their
own. unique ways
apples, they are
from a distant branch of a tree
that won’t let them fall
too far away

and, in fact
helps them to soar

– Mark L. Lucker
© 2020
http://lrd.to/sxh9jntSbd

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