You may have noticed in the new this week, that one of those rare occasions occurred in the deep, dark night skies above us.
For about 3 or 4 days this well (Feb 25th -28th) we would have the chance to view all our ‘sister’ planets in an arc in the night sky.
My family drive few minutes from our house (we live near a new Observatory but that was fully booked!) but still managed to see at least 6 of the planets (apparently Neptune was hiding behind the moon..I may have wrong it could be Saturn!)
Anyway it was a rare unique this to see these planets all in alignment with the next viewing of this type not happening until 2040!
This trip inspired this short view response, as it does …
‘There’s no mystery to Black History‘ (that’s my little poetic saying). Parents from Jamaica. I have traced my ancestry back to the point when slavery was just abolished (around 1834).
And now nearly 200 years later in the UK my son and daughter are just learning about Black History in school. Wow. Is this ‘Titantic’ ship starting to turn? Who know, hopefully for everyone of colour, wherever we are all are, whatever status we hold, just maybe there are slivers of light appearing amidst the once long and eternally dark tunnel, that we have been treading.
As a would be poet, below is my first take on the many wonderful black inspirational people that have had endure; so people like me, don’t have to as much. More to follow throughout October (and maybe beyond) on other topics.
WHO ARE WE? (starting with the past)
We could be the person on the bus
Your name may be have been Rosa Parkes
Your life made to suffer by the colour of your skin
Yes; they have tried to keep us hidden; into the dark
We were the people without a voice
But Martin Luther made them hear
Look what they did to our dear proud brother
Because he made ‘them’ see what they all feared
We are the ones that move fast
Yes; Jesse Owens showed the dictator this
In the face of complete and utter oppression
It’s something that hasn’t quite fallen over the precipice
We have own Marvel Man from the past
No wheelchair in sight; but his name has an X
A voice for black empowerment
And contrary to many he wasn’t always vexed
A personal mentor; the first black female poet
If you don’t know; Phillis Wheatley was her name
George Washington recognised the talent
For every poet; she should be in your ‘hall of fame’
We need to be like our once enslaved Frederick Douglass
He fought to support those via the abolition of slavery
Putting pen to paper for all to read
His life, his very own Black History
We are the ones that Marshall the Good
Overturn the wrong for the right
Winning against segregation for the learning to occur
We thank him for providing; ‘out of darkness’ we too now have light
We are among the ‘greatest’ ones that had to rumble
The man with fists and feet of flight
Yes Cassius/Muhammed Ali knew how to move
You couldn’t stop him talking either; any day or night
We are the ones that have had to ACT
Mr. Poitier the consummate pro; won an Oscar
Imagine that in an era for his accolade
Showed that black people could also raise ‘the bar’
We should be Harriet Tubman the saviour
Literally saving over 300 enslaved souls
Nursing her community to a better educated life
She was dedicated, selfless and bold
We are the forerunner’s to make things happen
From a seat of power to make the change
Shirley Chisholm started the political race
And now her stepping stones has put us on the front page
We are the entrepreneur’s with a million in the bank
Madam C J Walker knew how to make ‘hair pay’
Making jobs for over 3,000 people at that time
Means we continue to use her genius every single day
We are everyone, everything, just like you
We have beautiful, hair, colour, skin and eyes
We are proud, clever, funny with intelligence
We are here, we are all together, let’s all keep aiming for that prize…
Today I spoke with a marketing expert about how to better manage your online profile, promoting your work and doing this in the best way possible to get the best return.
Sounds simple enough, apart from the fact that one of the key things is to tell any visitors to my website/blog more about me, so they will glean from this this what they are here for.
So to this end I have updated my ‘about me’ or my ‘about J W Nelson’ sections in an effort to give readers, viewers the option to quickly know about me and what i want to achieve.
Please check out the above sections and let me know if its any good! And to help with knowing more about me – here is a little ditty…
ALL ABOUT ME…
Why not I’m a writer
I don’t box, so I’m no fighter
Like to boogie when I get chance
And by the way it means I like to dance
Like being happy and never sad
My occupation is being more than a dad
Never naughty so no ending up in court
Enjoy going to the gym and playing many sports
Enjoy the taste of food, especially spiced lamb
Yes, I’m the man from the Midlands – Yes that’s Birmingham
No hiding in my family of six
Growing up was like a certain film – maybe the Matrix?
The blue pill guided my path, my life
Doors opened, I found a job and my wife
The red pill meant having a boy and a girl
Precocious little blighters, make up our small world
I have always wanted to write
To have the ability to excite
Involve, stimulate and entertain
That’s the target, that is my gain
Hello from ‘Me’ – a poetic set piece about me and who I am and try to be.
Any feedback welcomed; on here or @jwnelson3 (twitter) or j_w_nelson309 (Instagram)
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