Begonya Plaza: MOTHERHOOD

Having my parents with us in New York was wonderful, important, and necessary.

LOVE THYSELF

Girls, young women, older women! Join us and contribute your thoughts to help empower the female spirit, and to promote self-esteem in women of all ages and cultures. We are just getting started with this open dialogue... Please share your thoughts and enrich our world. Explain how you see relations between man and woman, and between ourselves, and how we can return to being if not GODDESSES, then just plain SPECIAL.

Bienvidas! Mujeres jovenes y mayores, hablemos de como podemos enriquecer nuestro amor propio, nuestra libertad femenina y potencial interior. Escriban sus opiniones sobre como ven el mundo de hoy en dia en cuanto a la relacion entre hombre y mujer, y entre nosotras mismas, y como podemos volver a ser DIOSAS.

BEING WOMAN

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HIGH SCHOOL OF ART AND DESIGN **************************************** New York City

You go girl!

THE CAT’S PHOTOS

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HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

Nothing is greater than having one's mother, and being a mother one self. That is the miracle of life.

DAUGHTER: Caterina

MOTHER: Ines

GRANDMOTHER: Carmen

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MOTHER EARTH:

I wish I could do more, I wish I could write more, and create work that makes a difference, and inspires people to think, to accept truth and question the lies that we are being fed by media that is so obviously controlled by corporations, who’s sole interest is to sell and make money at what ever cost.
I wonder if I’m just wasting my time right now and instead of trying to think these things through, and question in my mind the issues that matter in our world, for our own well being and the well being of our children, shouldn’t I instead be enjoying a few precious moments of sun, drinking, dancing, laughing, while ignoring and justifying the blister that impedes my tired feet from walking with grace. Is it all the same? Will the powers that have a hold on our psyche always get away with murder and treason, until that day arrives, that unfortunate end, when it’s too late and we all are forced to suffer the consequences. I can’t stand the idea that so many wonderful people out there believe that nothing is wrong, as long as they are comfortably numb, and that the only topic of importance is whether Obama should be punished for having accepted the controversial pastor Rev. Wright into his life. But we’re okay because have a generous candidate who is compensating us with a token gesture for the high prices and low pay. So I ask myself, why can’t Hillary Clinton understand Obama’s predicament in having accepted the Doctor, Minister, Pastor and Reverend into his life even with all his imperfections, and extreme views that don’t’ seem so extreme when you really listen to them, as he interprets the Bible, a book that is so full of extremes anyway. At least Obama didn’t marry the guy. It’s worse I think, that Hillary married a man who ended up betraying her for something so meaningless as a moment of sexual pleasure, he broke his vows to his wife and to the country he lost an awful lot of respect. But I guess she thinks this is different, and continued to stay with this man, the president of the country. Obama went to this preacher in order to give and support a Church who’s actions demonstrated compassion and activism. For me, Hillary stayed with Clinton for personal interests and now she denounces Obama with such righteousness. I’ve liked Hillary, I’ve been struggling with myself for not being completely convinced about her as our future president, but I just can’t help seeing her phoniness, and lack of sincerity and commitment with what she is really going to do. Maybe I’m too naïve, and only someone like her is capable of making some sort of change, by way of negotiating with the evil, greedy powers. Why can’t we accept Obama who is willing to really take risks and not play the game? If Clinton is so adamant that Obama can’t handle the political machinery of the White House, then what is she really saying? There is no hope for uncovering the lies and moving forward in the interest of the people. That the powers are simply too strong and that we need to sell out in some way? Otherwise we will be considered a national threat. I’m not happy that Bill Clinton passed a bill to privatize the media, I’m actually very upset about it. Big mistake that has now turned us into uninformed and passive citizens, who cannot take action because we don’t know what really is going on and what to respond to, because journalists do nothing more than to feed a delusional image of our reality. I am so tired of hearing the same news on every channel, and being forced to give importance to issues I really don’t care about because I know that there are things out there, going on that are impacting my life so much more, and will affect the life of future generations. I don’t want to live through a war, I pray every day that I don’t. I already know enough of what so many people suffered in our recent past, and now it would be so much worse, because with the press of one button all of us are left in the fumes of a horrific misery. But in the meantime I don’t want to live on my knees, like Passionaria would say. I want my rights as a citizen to be respected, and I don’t want to compare this country with other places of the world where there is ignorance and imperialistic power. We have come this far as a nation for a reason, no need to feel like “It could be worse”, why not feel like we are working to make it better. A country that takes serious responsibility in educating our youth so that the future brings up contributing thinking citizens, with bright ideas and revolutionary concepts for living in congruence with the environment and other nations. A future that has enthusiastic, caring people who want to reach out to those with less opportunities so that in the end we all benefit. We need to stop teaching our children that money and material things are essential to happiness, when we know that it’s not true and can prove that the time spent making money takes away from the attention and love we need to give to them, which is what they will have to build up and strengthen. The United States is a beautiful, majestic country with the most powerful minds in the world, lets use this power to empower our nation not diminish and destroy. We need to focus on what really matters, and who’s going to make it happen, who’s going to do something about our educational system, our prison system, and in between? We are responsible for preparing our children for life. If they don’t have options for them, except what’s made available; drugs and envy from all the advertising, what can we expect.
I agree with Obama in that we need to communicate with our enemy, and like Abraham Lincoln said himself: “Am I not destroying my enemy by befriending him?”

Without an open honest dialogue, we are forced to fight, and this may be very good for the arms and petroleum business for a while, but afterwards there will be a huge bill to pay, and the people will have nothing to lose but to fight for their existence tooth and nail.

DEMOCRATIC SITES:
rethinkingschools
LibertyTree
DemocracyNow
HuffingtonPost
BillMoyers

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THE GREATEST JOY & RESPONSIBILITY

Being a good mother requires a delicate balance of watching, observing, listening, guiding, controlling and yet trusting and letting go. This is indeed my greatest responsibility, and the source of my greatest joy, and fulfillment.

There is nothing more beautiful than to look at my daughter and see reflected in her eyes all the love, care and dedication I’ve given her, and to see that my work has not been in vain. But it’s not over, and I don’t think that it will ever be. Sometimes I wonder if what I do and how I do it is the right way, but all I have to ask myself is, am I being honest, am I speaking from my heart and experience.

I know that I’m not perfect, and I try to realize this every day, and through my imperfections I explore acceptance and openness toward others. But I also see more and more how this frail society increasingly dangles its vulnerable ego on a thin string of material gain and external recognition. I am committed 100% to exploring this phenomenon with my daughter, through our daily activities, through everything that is being fed to us by the media, and our surroundings, in terms of behavior, fashion, standards of living and questioning.

The most challenging of all, at least for me, is to make her see that it’s not about today’s instant gratifications, but about tomorrow’s enduring and integral fulfillment. I guess it’s the natural thought process of a youth, to not have to be aware of time and space, and to think that there is no tomorrow, while everything is given to them by the parents.

I ask myself how a child can learn to appreciate and value things when everything comes so easy, when time just lingers with no responsibilities or tasks at hand.

I am so grateful for what my parents taught me, when I was forced to sit at the dinner table every night after school and do my home work, and then do extra work that my father would give to me and my other siblings, in Spanish. I am grateful that my parents insisted we sit at the dinner table every night and over a meal have a conversation and share the day’s events in Spanish. I am grateful for having the responsibility of washing the dishes, of helping with the laundry, of making my bed and keeping the home neat and clean. I am grateful that my father always insisted on practicing manners and discipline. He watched over us like a hawk, making sure we knew how to eat, and sit straight, and excuse ourselves from the table. I am grateful that he insisted we respect others as we respect ourselves. So when I see my daughter not take notice of these things, I instantly address them, and take the time to discuss their importance and value.

It’s a pity that in our public schools students are not being taught manners, values, ethics… I believe that without these observances, students don’t have the opportunity to appreciate education, discipline, will power and intellectual ambition. This is not a luxury, my parents didn’t have money, my father was a baker and my mother a beautician. Their story is fascinating and unpredictable in that they arrived to this country with money but then lost it all and had to start from scratch, unaccustomed to a life of struggle. I am proud to see how they rolled up their sleeves and faced their reality with courage and passion. We lived a simple life, but a very rich life filled with love, good food, conversation, travel, and structure. I am lucky that my parents had no addictions, nor external dependencies, they got up early every morning with a smile. My father was very temperamental, and overpowering, yet always available to drive us to our dance, and music after school lessons. He always regretted not having had the opportunity for an education because of the Spanish Civil War, so he wanted his children to take advantage of the blessings of a war free society...