A friend recently shared this poem with me. It stayed with me, and with permission, I’m sharing it here in case it speaks to you as well.
THE COUNCIL OF ELDERS
Paying Tribute to the ForemothersBy Lynne M. MacLean
Out of the old murky photo, the Council of Elders emerges,
gathered in a room of dark wood panels,
around a cloth-covered table.
Women all, they stare unflinchingly back at the camera.
Their partners, old bald men and faded women,
sit blurred and shadowed beside them, not seeing
the ghosts
who hover at the frame’s edges.The Elders themselves are greying,
or grey, or white-haired indeed,
and exceedingly present, with spines of steel,
robed in thick garments
redolent of responsibility and power,
and suppression of
their unbidden shades.With gazes grave and canny,
the Elders have risen from nothing,
from a time when women held little in their own hands.
Decades of the hunt and the gathering,
of the blood and the planting,
sharpens their vision
though their eyes are failing.But ghosts gather here, too.
Specters of determined, too-smart girls
risen from stigma, from difference, from poverty, from chaos.
Eighteen-year-old ghosts that dance, laugh too hard,
drink too much, fall in love too deeply.
If you look sideways, into the shrewd eyes
of the Council of Elders,
you can see the ghosts
dancing still.Printed with Lynne’s permission.
Originally published in Eye to the Telescope Magazine, 2026, Issue #60, Paying Tribute, Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association, https://eyetothetelescope.com.
Part of the joy of sharing this poem is that it takes me back to grad school where I first met Lynne. You can find out more about her here: Lynne MacLean As you can see Lynne writes speculative fiction, the occasional literary piece, short stories and poems.
I have written about my appreciation of poetry before, maybe something here will resonate for you. Poetry that resonates , I have been a thousand different women, My go to morning treasures, and Morning rituals.
I delight in sharing my thoughts, such as these, in a newsletter, typically every few months. And now and then, ideas show up our Facebook page. Always love to hear from you via email.
