Love Day Dance and Keychain Giveaway

Whatever your plans for the upcoming love day or if you have not yet made plans for Valentine's Day, I am here to tell you about a special Love Day dance.

Actually, I am going to let my net friend Lisa explain to you all about the event in her article on the worldwide dance steps to further awareness of violence against women on Valentine's Day in 2013. Be sure to check out the link to the locator she provides for details of the One Billion Rising dance event nearest you!

Yes. I am a woman who has fallen victim to child abuse and domestic violence. I am fortunate to be a survivor of these demons, unlike my mother, whose death was a direct result of domestic violence. You can read my story amid the prose and poems of Arise Against Abuse.

Dance Domestic Violence Away by abitosunshine

Check out another keychain.

 

 

In honor of my mother, Anna Mae Cox, and a desire to end violence against women, I am giving away one of my Dance Domestic Violence Away Keychains!

To qualify as an entrant to the Dance Domestic Violence Away Keychain Giveaway you MUST:

1. Publish a post on your blog about dancing to end violence against women.
2. Within your article you must mention and provide a link to Lisa's One Billion Rising article. (http://www.squidoo.com/one-billion-rising-around-the-world-against-violence)
3. Link up with SHARE the LOVE blog hop no later than Midnight EST on February 13th, 2013. Include the hop badge and link in your blog post as well as Add Your Link to the list at the end of this blog article.

 

Linking your end violence against women blog post up with SHARE the LOVE before February 14th, 2013 is your official entry to the Giveaway. All entries will be confirmed and if incorrect will not be included in the random giveaway drawing.

 

Drawing will be held on Valentine's Day, February 14th, 2013. Winner will be notified by email and on this blog. (So be sure your email address is left in the comment section this post so you can be contacted. For example you may use this format for your email: ruthcox at abitosunshine dot net) Winner will have 48 hours to reply to their winning email with shipping details, and if do not reply, a new winner will be randomly chosen.

 

Will you rise up and dance domestic violence away this Valentine's Day?

Link up your end violence against women blog post to confirm your entry to the Love Day Dance and Keychain Giveaway!

 

Additionally, you are, of course, invited to link up with SHARE the LOVE blog hop with any blog posts on the topic of Love throughout the month.

I Just Cannot "Do" Mother's Day

I Just Cannot "Do" Mother's Day
©2002 Ruth Cox

I just cannot "do" Mother's Day;
Most don't understand why this I say.

My Mother is dead and I miss her so much,
Daily glimpses of her my soul does touch.
Her life was stolen from my siblings and me,
Domestic violence took her from us, you see.

My sisters have children unseen by our Mother;
Being held by one's Gramma is a feeling like no other.
Brothers share memories of Mom in a red cloud of danger;
A fist full of pain in their hearts is not a stranger.

I just cannot "do" Mother's Day;
Hope you understand why this I say.

My son is missing from this daily world o' mine,
Lost to drugs and for his heart I endlessly pine.
He wanders aimlessly in his world, dark and remote,
The fears and horrors of his past he continues to tote.

My hopes and dreams for my son, difficult to smother,
Live on in my soul and I pray he shall one day discover
A light to lead him along a path that will in the end
Allow him to feel the love of his Mother, also his friend.

I just cannot "do" Mother's Day;
Hope you understand why this I say.

My spirit is filled with sadness on this honored day
But I celebrate it daily, in my own special way.
And for those of you who miss a child or your mother
Know that you surely have the understanding of another.

My heart grieves for the loss of my mother and my son,
Yet deep inside I know the raging battle shall be won.
For I believe one day a light will shine from up above;
Mothers and their children will be reunited by His love.

I just cannot "do" Mother's Day;
Hope you understand why this I say.

"VIOLENCE IN THE HOME"

I am continuing to follow Kimberly Blackadar's Blog and today her post is entitled,
Poetry Workshop #2: Borrowed Poetry

Accorcing to POETS.org, a pure Borrowed or Found poem consists exclusively of outside texts: the words of the poem remain as they were found, with few additions or omissions. Decisions of form, such as where to break a line, are left to the poet.

My Borrowed/Free Verse Poem/Social Commentary is written from various titles in the CONTENTS page of the book, Battered Wives, by Del Martin, 1976. I've omitted no words in the titles; I have rearranged the content titles, quoted them, and added punctuation. I have added as few words as possible; my added words are not in quotations. If the word "wife" or "wives" was used in the original content title, I have inserted the word "spouse" in its place and the author's use of "she" is changed to "she/he" as well.


----------


"VIOLENCE IN THE HOME"
©Ruth Cox

"The Incidence of Domestic Violence"
occurring in
"The Great American Family"
may consist of
"Spouse Abuse : The Skeleton in the Closet,"
and/or abuse of
"The Children."

"An Overview of Cruelty"
may tell us
"What Triggers the Batterer."

These triggers may include:
"The Economics of Marriage,"
"Verbal Arguments,"
"Class and Status Variables,"
"Histories of Violence and Occupational Hazards,"
"Drunkenness and Alcoholism,"
"Jealousy,"
"Sterotyped Sex Roles,"
"Socialization and Sex Roles",
and
"Sexuality as Aggressiveness."

"The Victim -- Why Does She/He Stay?"
Victims are
"Trapped by Fear!"

And there are
"Socially Determined Reasons."

These may include:
"Arrest Procedures,"
"Police Policy and Practice,"
"Spouse-Abuse Laws,"
and
"Protection Orders,"
which protect no one.

And, there is
"Social Services -- The Big Runaround!"

The lack of
"Emergency Housing,"
"Public Financial Assistance,"
"Mental Health Services,"
"Police Training and Crisis Intervention,"
and lack of
"Victim Aid"...
all render the victim
helpless
and
hopeless.

These are
"The Facts of Life"
and...
Not much has changed since
Del Martin
wrote
Battered Wives
in 1976.