Four statuesque Sisters stroll in the cafe
Ebony elegant
In slim jeans, boots and backpacks
One’s t-shirt reads
“Act like a lady
Think like a boss”
In bold white letters
On a black background
They order four grande frappuccinos
Drape themselves around two tables
Spread out their papers
Get out their phones
Open up notebooks
Start the discussion
Their voices flash
In a boisterous, bickering banter
As each one speaks her mind
Wrestles conflicting ideas
Into a cohesive whole
They prepare a knock-out presentation
While flipping their braids
And swinging their legs
Leaning over to scribble in each others’ notebooks
Slapping their hands on the table
A formidable force
These four Sisters
These proud ladies have come so far.
Their mothers could only dream of such a future
Like the characters in a battered paperback of “The Color Purple”
They were imprisoned by Jim Crow
Suffered and settled for less
Learned to gulp down the bitter
Suppress the hope
They toiled
Under the white thumb of entitlement
There were no afternoons spent in coffee cafes
Discussing ideas
Planning for success
Their lives were full of dark, sinister clouds
Red rents in the sky
But these daughters’ horizon
Is a clearer, brighter blue
Thanks to the sacrifices of those
Who have come before
Sojourner
Harriet
Maya
Michelle
And countless other mothers
Have fought for freedom
Pierced the clouds
With rays of light
Now these Sisters
See wide expanses
Watch out world!
They square their shoulders back
To take their place
In the sun