Only one more night, and then it is International Women’s Day. I hope you have something special planned. I imagine, like most of us, you will give little thought to your day. You might pass a flashing billboard that mentions it, but then the routine of the day will push it to the back of your mind. Instead, why don’t you do something different? Do something to help another woman. (Or if you are a man, to help a woman.) Let the day begin to mean something to you…

Today, I have a poem. It’s short, but if it says what I want to say, it doesn’t need to be long. For this poem, though, you need to have some insight. If you are unfamiliar with what happens to women during a war, there are plenty of sites out there to help you. The war in Ukraine has been weighing on my mind, and from stories I hear, it sounds like this is like every other war…the women are a tool of war, a prize of war, and an opportunity for warriors. One can wish we had progressed beyond this, but it seems we never do.

WHERE ARE THE WOMEN?

 Where are the women?
Hiding from the men.
There are no men here.
The men have gone to war.
So why are they hiding?
Not from their men.
What men?
The men with whom they are at war.
Where are those men?
Looking for the women.
You don’t mean…?
Yes, I do.