Stories from the Stringam Family Ranches of Southern Alberta

From the 50s and 60s to today . . .



Monday, February 1, 2021

Honoring the Women

 

First, there were great grandmothers, I love them, one and all!

Supported husbands, working hard, raised fam’lies large and small,

Bore the biases and duties of the women of their day,

Then packing all and sundry, left their countries far away.

 

My maternal grandmother left home and family, too,

To carve a legacy with a young man she hardly knew,

Together knew disasters, lost their work to treachery,

But managed, still, with grit, to carve a life they’d not foreseen!

 

My Grandmother paternal left her comforts far behind,

Moving north to Canada, she knew not what she’d find,

Took on the rancher’s life which oft proved perilous at best,

Nursing, caring, weaving, bearing—helped the world progress!

 

My mother had eight brothers, she grew up as ‘one more boy’,

Inside or out, housework or chores, wow, that girl was employed!

But she withdrew from scholarship, a pro career as well,

To be a Rancher’s wife—have kids—and ring a dinner bell.

 

My elder sister’s graceful, prone to fashions (more than me),

My younger and I have some laughs, both filled with fun esprit!

My sisters both are redheads, (who know where this blonde came from?)

But they both helped me be the woman I’d one day become.

 

My daughters (and in-laws) are grown and raising families,

All girls that I am proud to know and bring along with me,

Their daughters, too, all have my heart. Don’t know what e’er I did,

Before I knew them, everyone, and claimed them as grandkids!


Now in a small addendum here, I will, to you, explain,

That what was once pejorative, is something else again,

Cause ‘spunky’ is a word that means courageous; full of cheek,

And a ‘broad’ ‘s a girl who doesn’t take herself too seriously.

 

So, when I think about the women I have in my life,

Past or present, young and old, in days of sun or strife,

Daily, I am praying, thanking God for what He’s done,

Cause he gave me my ‘Spunky Broads’. I’m proud of every one!


Cause Mondays do get knocked a lot,
With poetry, we all besought
To try to make the week begin
With gentle thoughts,
Perhaps a grin?
So JennyCharlotteMimi, me
Have crafted poems for you to see.
And now you’ve read what we have wrought…
Did we help?
Or did we not?


Next week, if you come here, you'll see,
Our craziest vacation memory!





Thinking of joining us for Poetry Monday?
We'd love to welcome you!
Topics for the next few weeks...
Craziest Vacation Memory (February 8)
From Your Pet's Point of View (February 15)
Favourite Word that Starts With D (February 22)

Peanut Butter Day (March 1)

12 comments:

  1. That's a great poem, Diane, and a lovely tribute to all the women in your family. Mine's more on a general theme, and I have quite a sprinkling of these SOBs among my friends ...

    Spunky Old Broads are a special tribe,
    They like to show that they still have that vibe
    That declares 'though they’re older - well over fifty -
    They still have that spark, they’re still pretty nifty.

    Dressed up to the nines they’ll go out on the town
    Their noise and their laughter will make some folk frown
    They like to have fun; not shy ladies they
    Will expect to be heard, they will have their say.
    Some may be outlandish, others quite classy
    But one thing is certain: they’re definitely sassy!

    They’ll concede that in life-years they’re well past mid-way
    But they’re not giving up yet, they still will make hay,
    As long as the sun shines on them they are certain
    They’ll live life to the full before down comes the curtain.

    So let’s raise our glasses, give a round of applause
    To these lovers of life: To: Spunky Old Broads!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This is exactly what I set out to write, SBM! A sweet trubute to the 'not yet ready to give up on life' set. I love it! (Mine kind of just took off on its own! My writing often does that!)

      Delete
  2. A lovely tribute to broads who would have gone under if that had not been spunky. Broads that the world needs.

    ReplyDelete
  3. How is it you always manage to say with poetry exactly the story you mean to tell? I am in awe.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a sweet tribute to the strong women in your life. You have no bad poems but this was definitely one of the better ones.

    ReplyDelete
  5. We have never seen this photo! So priceless! And love the poetry, too. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. How I love this acknowledgment of the power of these women!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wonderfully done! My hope is to be spunky someday, somehow. Right now, life feels to plebeian.

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a beautiful tribute to the females in your life! I loved it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. A wonderful tribute to the women who paved the way.
    I'm joining you next week for Poetry Monday. Can't wait!

    ReplyDelete

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