Up Against the Wind (Lori Perry?)

Yesterday I finished the book for Colored girls who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow is Enuf. It took me a whole day to read and was worth every second spent. The selection is labeled as a "choreopoem", a variation of 20 poems bound together to make one complete story. Every poem is narrated by a different color that makes up the rainbow, each deemed as a lady (e.g. lady in blue, purple, yellow, orange, red, green), there is also a lady in brown. These seven personalities make up the voices that speak of the struggles faced by women of color; from rape to three way love triangles and building self motivation.

All the emotions and ideas that have treaded themselves thru me were recognized in this book. I cried for the many times I wished death upon my own self after dealing with the harsh reality that I no longer believed in who I was. I laughed at all the times I heard "I'm sorry"; excuses men give to women for being the way they are or doing the dirt they do. I pained at the idea that I took comfort in wanting love from others when I could barely love myself. And I cursed at the drunken man who dropped his kids from the 5th story floor, because their mother chose not to marry him.

The song Up Against the Wind is beautiful, strong, worthy, and damaged. Just the same as the book and its contents, the song speaks from a woman's perspective and tells the tale of the challenge(s) she faces within society and herself. The hell that we as young colored women have endured dealing with ourselves, society, and coming of age/ wisdom has forced a strain on us as a people. The book honors our internal struggles, strains that were present when no one else could witness what happened behind closed doors. A testimony. The book and the song are each testimonies from the hearts of colored women. The song speaks for the woman in the book and the woman in the book speaks for me and many others. Our testimonies bind together to create a quilt of perseverance, self destruction, laughter, grief, sisterly love, and sorrow. This quilt of emotions is all we have to shelter our sanity as we are forced to go up against the wind.