This is how my poetry happens:
Mulberry Mood
Oh, mulberry mood,
the poet’s mood
of purple intensity
when, summoned by inspiration,
willing words come flying
through the windows
of the soul.
Haltingly they hover
over the page
hesitating in pale pencil
before they settle
to leave a permanent imprint:
burgundy butterfly blots
of feeling and thought
indelible rorschach
of self.
Jakarta 2004
Therese Benadé, author of Kites of Good Fortune, writes about her heritage and upbringing in South Africa and her travels and living experiences on five continents. A Canadian citizen, she lives in Ipswich, Massachusetts with her husband, Jim Armstrong. Her two adult children are Rex and Kirstie van der Spuy. Read more...
A story about the lives of the author’s ancestors at the Cape of Good hope in the 17th and 18th centuries. Published 2004.
The Afrikaans translation of Kites of Good Fortune.
Set in South Africa between 1880 and 1927, the book explores the intellectual and moral influences on South African women of the ‘head, heart and hand’ education brought by American teachers from Mount Holyoke College.
Stories from my life touching on my childhood, my travels and teaching career, on being an immigrant, on learning languages and unlearning racism.