Frog Applause by Teresa Burritt

Frog Applause

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  1. margueritem

    margueritemGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    Little teresa, if we had known you we would have protected you. We’re sorry for your pain.

    Now I’ll whack that guy in the back of the knees and send him flying, just like the bluebird.

  2. Tom Saaristo

    Tom SaaristoGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    I love the multiple mediums

  3. Prolagus

    Prolagus said, about 1 year ago

    Whoa, hard to find something to say here. But we have a voice, while so many kids don’t. There are many organizations that fight against child sexual abuse, in all forms*. Visit Rainn (http://rainn.org/) for the USA,
    NSPCC (http://www.nspcc.org.uk/) for the UK,
    Child Wise (http://www.ecpat.org/) for Australia,
    CSICA (http://www.csicainfo.com/) for Canada.

    *http://tinyurl.com/ysguub

  4. plight

    plight said, about 1 year ago

    in the screaming of my dreaming
    there’s no promised dawn a-gleaming
    no lively blood a-streaming
    no mask of joy a-beaming
    no answer to infernal carnal why

    now I hear the bombers coming
    their awful chorus strumming
    the generals’ troops a-drumming
    machines of war a-humming
    their engines writing scars upon the sky

    when I wake in fright at night
    there’s no yearning for the light
    no distant end in sight
    no soul to bind me tight
    no ear to hear the quiver in my sigh

    in the temple short of dawn
    where ragged souls are shorn
    all destiny unborn
    hope and faith forlorn
    the land where life itself has come to die

    I’m alone as I was made
    no guts or pride to trade
    simply simple and afraid
    simply thus my game was played
    soundly silent as the end draws ever nigh

    so take these words for fake
    as a brief, morose mistake
    serpent writ as merely snake
    bald claim without a stake
    ‘tis a better world without the eye of I

  5. margueritem

    margueritemGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    Thanks, Prolagus, for all the information. This will reach and help someone out there today.

    Plight, thanks for the poem.

  6. Fairportfan

    Fairportfan said, about 1 year ago

    …my name is luka
    i live upstairs from you
    ….
    they only hit until you cry
    after that you don’t ask why…

  7. Fairportfan

    Fairportfan said, about 1 year ago

    On a different but related subject- a blog post i did a while ago about domestic abuse:
    http://mog.com/fairportfan/blog/192806

  8. margueritem

    margueritemGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    Thanks, fairportfan. This is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

    See ya at Pibgorn tonight.

  9. haikumiko

    haikumiko said, about 1 year ago

    Thank you, Prolagus and fairportfan, for all the great information. Powerful strip today. Wow.

  10. pabsungenis

    pabsungenisGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    Amazing. I continue to be amazed how you’ve sublimated your pain into art, and such powerful art, too. Abuse is too often swept under a rug or ignored as people look the other way. Thank you for doing everything you have to bring awareness to this, and know that we all love you.

  11. The Old Wolf

    The Old WolfGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    Wow.

     
    Margueritem, thanks for the powerful link. I’ll even forgive you for adding another strip to my “must read” list, especially when all my time is taken up by the insanity over at Pibgorn.
     
    @Frogapplause: Every hat I have ever worn is off to you for bringing this subject to the forefront in an unorthodox medium. You will reach some people who might never otherwise have child abuse on their radar.
     
    Child abuse takes many forms - sexual abuse is only one of them. One of the most powerful songs on the subject I ever heard is “Remember the Child”, by Richard Wagner. It’s available on a CD at http://www.wagnermusic.com/store.htm.
     
    I include the lyrics below:
     
    Remember The Child
     
    ABC me crying,
    Momma make me smile
    Rock me in your arms a little while
    ABC me crying;
    Won’t you love your child?
     
    EFG I’m sorry;
    Daddy take my hand
    Tell me what I’ve done so bad
    EFG I wonder,
    Why are you so mad?
    Don’t you love me Dad?
     
    Cross my heart, I swear Ma
    I won’t cry no more
    I’ll just lie in silence
    Down here on the floor
    Cross my heart and hope to die
    If you don’t want me anymore
     
    123 for you Ma,
    I won’t talk so loud
    I won’t laugh so hard,
    I’ll shut my mouth
    123 for you Ma,
    I won’t make a sound
     
    Do-Re-Mean and angry words are all I hear
    Through my bedroom walls Dad, loud and clear
    Do-Re-Mi. I lie awake and shake with fear
    And wish I had no ears
     
    Try to remember the child that once was you
    Did you hide in the corners of your lonely room
    And pray to God to help you through, the long and lonely night
    Afraid to holler “Momma, oh please come hold me tight”.
     
    Go on and close your eyes, Ma
    Take a little trip through time, Dad
    Let it all come back to you
    And give onto every child the love-the love denied to you
    And remember the child will remember
    And remember the child will remember his whole lifetime too.
     
    Richard Wagner

  12. Nozzi

    Nozzi said, about 1 year ago

    Plight, that should be dedicated to the people of Iraq.

  13. flyingflowerpot

    flyingflowerpot said, about 1 year ago

    I wish I had the words to express my feelings. I’m numb right now.

  14. Bill Hinds

    Bill HindsGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    What a terrific range of art!

  15. margueritem

    margueritemGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    ccdesan, those lyrics brought tears to my eyes. Thanks for sharing them with all of us.

  16. neonnurse

    neonnurseGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    What you are doing here is important, even though you may never know who you’ve helped.

  17. The Old Wolf

    The Old WolfGenius_badge said, about 1 year ago

    Margueritem: You’re welcome - they do the same thing to me. If you want real catharsis, listen to the song…

  18. Fairportfan

    Fairportfan said, about 1 year ago

    Suzanne Vega’s “Luka”, which i quoted, is powerful - and it actually manage to get significant airplay, despite its message:

     
        my name is luka
        i live on the second floor
        i live upstairs from you
        yes i think you’ve seen me before
        if you hear something late at night
        some kind of trouble.
        some kind of fight

     
        just don’t ask me what it was
        just don’t ask me what it was
        just don’t ask me what it was

     
        i think it’s because i’m clumsy
        i try not to talk too loud
        maybe it’s because i’m crazy
        i try not to act too proud
        they only hit until you cry
        and after that you don’t ask why

     
        you just don’t argue anymore
        you just don’t argue anymore
        you just don’t argue anymore

     
        yes i think i’m okay
        i walked into the door again
        well, if you ask that’s what i’ll say
        and it’s not your business anyway
        i guess i’d like to be alone
        with nothing broken, nothing thrown

     
        just dont ask me how i am
        just dont ask me how i am
        just dont ask me how i am

  19. lrope

    lrope said, about 1 year ago

    Thank you for the lyrics, fairportfan. Here’s the video: http://tinyurl.com/3yjebs