Birthday Wishes for My Mother

Today (April 10th) is my mother's birthday. My mother is a phenomenal woman who my father fondly referred to as "a woman of substance." I am blessed to have a mother who is one of my dearest friends and as an adult I have grown to appreciate the special bond that I have with her. If you follow my blog or read my articles you will most likely find a reference to her. Today in commemoration of her birthday I decided to post one of my very early art pieces, while it is a simple art piece I love it. I also have posted my favorite mother poem which I wrote last year and gave to her as a gift on Christmas Day (she was very pleased with the framed poetry poster and has hang it up in her bedroom). My mother has been my greatest supporter over the years including when I decided to become an artist (even after she spent years supporting my university education in totally different fields). I truly am blessed and thank God for the wonderful parents he gave me. Happy Birthday Mummy and God Bless You Always!

Angel In Green: Black African Art by Injete Chesoni

(Pastel and Acrylic Art Painting of Black Girl)

Flowers for Mother: A Daughter's Wishes
(Daughter to Mother Poems by Injete Chesoni)
I wish you sunshine on your cloudy days
A burst of yellow to pierce the gray
I wish you spring’s flowers on winter days
A burst of color in the midst of pale
I wish you rain when your fields are dry
A blossoming of life where flowers die
I wish you joy every single day
And smiles to wash your pain away
I wish you wings so that you can fly
With the angels in heaven’s skies
I wish you the fulfillment
of dreams unfulfilled
And the contentment
that fulfillment brings
My dearest mother you see
I wish you all
that you have wished for me
On this and every single day
I wish you flowers
 to brighten up your days.

African Women: Proverbs, Poetry and Art

In keeping with the spirit of the New Year I decided to go back to my roots for some words of wisdom. Here are some African proverbs , poetry and art about women, friendship and motherhood.

Buy Three Flirts African Abstract Art Print Here

African Friendship Quotes
1. The friends of our friends are our friends. - Congo
2. A friend is someone you share the path with. - African proverb
3. To be without a friend is to be poor indeed. - Tanzania
4. Because friendship is pleasant, we partake of our friend's entertainment; not because we have not enough to eat in our own house. - African proverb
5. Hold a true friend with both hands. - African proverb
6. A friend is someone you share the path with. - African proverb
7. Show me your friend and I will show you your character. - African proverb
8. Sorrow is like a precious treasure, shown only to friends. - African proverb
9. Return to old watering holes for more than water; friends and dreams are there to meet you. - African proverb
10. Between true friends even water drunk together is sweet enough. - African proverb
11. A small house will hold a hundred friends. - African proverb
12. A close friend can become a close enemy. - African proverb
13. Bad friends will prevent you from having good friends. - Gabon

Family Unity: Abstract African Art Painting by Injete
Buy Family Unity African Art Print here

African Mother Quotes
1. The good mother knows what her children will eat. - Akan Proverb
2. Parents give birth to the body of their children, but not always to their characters. - Ganda Proverb
3. Only a mother would carry the child that bites. - Nigerian Proverb
4. Even though the baby monkey appears so ugly it's mother loves it anyway. - African proverb
5. The mother hen does not break its own eggs. - Swahili Saying, Eastern Africa
6. He that has never traveled thinks that his mother is the only good cook in the world. - Kenya
7. Every beetle is a gazelle in the eyes of its mother. - African proverb
8. A child does not laugh at the ugliness of his mother. - African proverb
9. A mother cannot give birth to something bigger than herself. - African Proverb
10. Give birth to children and you will be pregnant with worries. - Namibian Proverb

Sunset Dreams $150 (Free Shipping)

Media: Oil Paint on Metal (8.1 x 11.75 inches) 

   
African Women Quotes
1. If men swear that they want to harm you when you are asleep, you can go to sleep. If women say so, stay awake. - African proverb
2. A woman can hide her love for 40 years, but her disgust and anger not for one day. - Arab Proverb
3. If you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a family (nation)." - Ghana
4. A home without a woman is like a barn without cattle. - African proverb
5. An old woman  is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb. - African proverb
6. A woman is a flower in a garden; her husband is the fence around it. - Ghana
7. You are beautiful, but learn to work, for you cannot eat your beauty. - Congolese
8. Do not desire a woman with beautiful breasts, if you have no money. - South African

Friends On the Way to the River: $125  
Media: Oil Paint on Metal (9.25 x 13 inches)
Framed and Ready to Hang.

On the way to the river  

African Womens' Poetry by Injete Chesoni
On the way to the river
We stop and catch up
On the latest village gossip
Two sisters, two girlfriends having a chat
We talk of Amadou
And how he has married wife number two
And of Seydou
And how he flew into a rage over
His wife Paige
And her horrendous cooking
He is now thinking about
kicking her out
All over cooking
We chuckle
Maybe we will give her a lesson or two
On how to prepare a meal for two
That’s sure to please and appease her man
Into letting her stay
If she wants to that is
We chat about Mama Lucy
And her cheating ways
Yesterday she was caught
In Chief Malay’s
Boat
In a compromising position
We whisper and blush
At the thought
Wishing we were as daring and free as she
But as for us
We are tied up by the chains of domesticity
And we must return to our chores
Of fetching water
And washing clothes
And all those other never-ending tasks
The daily life of a wife
Interrupted for a moment
As we live other people's lives
In our daily gossip on the way to the river

Posing: Metal Wall Art Nude Painting by Injete

Acrylic Paint on Metal (22 x 25.5 inches Framed with Mat) 
Price: $350 (Free Shipping)