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A Child of Many Worlds Photographed Long Ago [1]

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Date: 2023-03-17  

Navajo Girl, Canyon de Chelle National Monument by Ansel Adams

Here is another poem to celebrate Women’s History Month. The poem was inspired by this picture of a Navajo girl taken by American Photographer Ansel Adams in the 1940’s, when Adams was working for the US Government as an official photographer.

A Child of Many Worlds Photographed Long Ago

Są'ąh naagháí dóó ił ééhózin achʼéʼé"

She is a Navajo

She is an American

She is like any other child

In the world

Alive this day, this year

She is herself.

Her face brightens with smiles

Her eyes pool with tears

She grows up strong

Or struggles with her health,

However it goes

She is herself.

The child takes up the mantle of adulthood

Works to survive

Works to create

She loves

She has children

Or does not –

Traveling the paths

The many worlds

Force her to go,

Still she is herself.

The many years pass

The world sees her now

As an old woman

Or a fierce warrior

Or just another consumer –

One of the billions,

None of that matters,

Inside are her dreams

Inside are her accomplishments

Inside is her experience

Inside is her wisdom,

She is as she as always been

Even as on that day as a child long ago

The bearded man

Took her photograph

For history –

She is herself.

"Ak’ijidí nilį́."

Carl Scott Harker ©2023

__________________________________________

My latest book of poetry is now available on Amazon, you can find more great poems in here: An Engineer of Words.

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