Morphological Confetti

I've been inspired recently to decorate our guest bedroom in sort of Early American. I'm calling it the "Tubman Suite" in honor of Harriet Tubman , abolitionist, who was born on the eastern shores of Maryland. I need to add a few more pieces to make it more nostalgic. I feel like this is the perfect opportunity now that Hollywood is producing an HBO movie on the life of Harriet Tubman starring Viola Davis. I'm excited! Listen, if you have any ideas, please let me know. Well, happy Mother's Day to all the mothers who read MC. Enjoy your weekend. Peace~

Frederick Douglass (c. 1817-1895) "Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe." -Frederick Douglass Harriet Tubman (1820(?)-l913) "I grew up like a neglected weed -- ignorant of liberty, having no experience of it." Bethune, Mary McLeod (1875-1955) "The whole world opened to me when I learned to read." Vick (198_-2006) Teddy Reads: Rest In Peace (RIP) Vick, we love u. Note: The teddy bear is a makeshift memorial to someone who was killed near or on that very spot. I've never met Vick, but he represents so many young black men who are murdered on the streets everyday of any city, USA.

Did you hear? Harriet Tubman smiled one night in December; I wish I could’ve seen it. I wish there was a photographer or sketch artist who could’ve captured it at the very moment when Momma Tubman smiled. I imagine the moment; she closed her eyes and stretched her arms to the cold December sky as she gave thanks to God. “I give you all the praises and all the glory dear Lord! Praise you Jesus!" Moses shouted as she looked across the field towards that land called Canaan. It wasn’t long ago when she was back in Dorchester County, Maryland. She went back to get her people. Harriet Tubman was determined to facilitate the manumission of her family members. She would eventually achieve that mission, but on Christmas Eve night in 1854 she would call upon two of her brothers Benjamin, 28 and Robert, 35. There were two other men and a woman from a nearby plantation, John Case, 20, Peter Jackson (age?), and Jane Kane, 22. The December air was cold, but they were all warm and brimming with...

Maryland History Samuel Ringgold Ward was born a slave in Maryland on October 17, 1817. In 1820, The Ward family escaped slavery through the Underground Railroad when Ward was around 3 years old. They eventually made it to New York where the young Samuel would attend school. Although he was too young to remember the brutality of Slavery, Samuel Ringgold Ward went on to become one of Slavery’s most eloquent orators. In 1839 Samuel became an agent for the American Anti-Slavery Society. His work also took him to Canada and Britain. Ward’s abolitionist work would continue throughout his life. He eventually retired in Jamaica where he died in 1866. Sources: Wikipedia.org and Blackpast.org

What is the first name that comes to mind when you think of The Underground Railroad? Harriet Tubman ? Yes! This is exactly what the public school system taught many of us. History teachers rarely spoke of any other conductors in The Underground Railroad. Now, Mother Tubman will always be the beloved star of the Underground, but there were others who courageously led hundreds or maybe thousands of enslaved Africans to freedom. For instance, a white southerner by the name of John Fairfield would lead hundreds to freedom through The Underground Railroad in the 1850s. Now, there were many whites who assisted the emancipation of thousands of Africans in captivity, but John Fairfield was from a slave-holding family in Virginia. Fairfield would often use his family history to his advantage and pose as a slave holder or bounty hunter on his trips south. Fairfield saw slavery as an evil institution and saw it first-hand as a youngster on the plantation in Virginia. He saw husbands sol...

I was tagged by author/poet , Cathy Delaleu for the questions listed below. It was a lot of fun. Check out Cathy's page. She has a wonderful new book of poetry titled , Wrapping Thoughts Beneath Emotive Rain. Thanks Cathy! 1. I HAVE NEVER WANTED TO SEEK Love as a younger man until Love found me and I've been hooked ever since. 2. WHEN I WAS 8 years old, I BELIEVED that my grandmother knew everything. I asked her questions that only the creator could know. She would give all the credit to God, so then I started asking her questions about him: "Grandma, does God have a brother or sister and do they have their own world to look after?" 3. IF I WAS MY OWN BEST FRIEND, WHAT I WOULD ENJOY THE MOST ABOUT SPENDING TIME WITH ME is that I could just talk about Writing, History, Literature, Poetry, Photography, Art and Culture all the time. Fortunately, I have a wife who loves to talk about all of those things. She's my "Bess" friend. 4. IF THE STORY OF...