bring on the rage
channel her in the darkness
invoke her name 
we will place her garland of skulls
around our necks
and dance

the demons 
who parade this earth
in dominance and ego
as men who bend us
when we are young
to their pleasure
will be silenced

we will destroy
and conquer
no longer captive
no longer tied to stakes
that burn
we are the fire

we will drink their blood
as it falls to the pavement
these men will not multiply
as systemic violence dies with us
and our daughters 
will rise
victorious

Kali

This one arrived on paper in anger. I will not apologize for feeling anger. As we learned this week about 62 million views on a website that celebrates men who drug and rape their wives, the Epstein Island survivors are still waiting for justice, and those in power continue to turn away…….I see you and I hear you. I am not saying that there are not good men in the world. I am lucky to be married to one who values my brain and my voice. But there are so many who see women as property and pleasure. If you believe in demons, they are here walking around in human form. It’s time for Kali to take them down! 

Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction, looks terrifying with her dark, angry face and garland of skulls. She represents ultimate, unbridled power that destroys ego and evil to allow for liberation. She is an incarnation of Durga, the mother goddess, who was created to fight demons who were attacking her husband, Shiva. The demon, Raktabija, had the power to create a clone from every drop of his blood that hit the ground. Kali outwitted the demon by lifting him into the air, devouring him with her teeth, and drinking his blood before it spilled onto the ground. After she defeated him, she went on to slay the other demons. She was in such a state of rage, that after she slaughtered all of the demons, Shiva could only stop her by throwing himself under her feet.