Queenlogoyellow
The Queen's Chronicles
Inspiration for an Influential, Passionate and Powerful Maturity
December 2009
In This Issue
Before I Begin
Be a Queen
A Queen by Any Other Name
The Queen

About
Queen Mama Donna

Donnanewsidebar

Donna Henes is an internationally renowned urban shaman, award-winning author, popular speaker, and workshop leader whose joyful celebrations of celestial events have introduced ancient traditional rituals and contemporary ceremonies to millions of people in more than 100 cities since 1972. She has published four books, a CD, an acclaimed quarterly journal and writes for the Huffington Post and UPI (United Press International) Religion and Spirituality Forum. Mama Donna, as she is affectionately called, maintains a ceremonial center, spirit shop, ritual practice and consultancy in Exotic Brooklyn, NY where she works with individuals, groups, institutions, municipalities and corporations to create meaningful ceremonies for every imaginable occasion.

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I am touched by your book, So nitty-gritty, right-on, practical and truthful and right to the point. It confirms my journey and feeds my sense of substance, though I feel fragile as I come back together again in my midlife. Because my journey has always been inner and deep, I find mirrors, only occasionally that reveal the truth of my experience. Thank you. Thank you again.
- NancyAnn, AZ



Calling All Queens!

The Queen's Chronicles

Offers upbeat, practical, and ceremonial inspiration for all women who want to enjoy the fruits of an influential, passionate, and powerful maturity.


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My dear sister Queens,
 
Writing The Queen's Chronicles is a joy and an honor - a labor of true love - but, the fact remains that it takes a great deal of time and effort and requires the services of a techno-cyber Queen to be able to offer it each month. Consequently, after two years of publishing, the royal coffers are sadly diminished and in desperate need of replenishing.
 
Your donations will allow me to continue to provide you with a monthly offering of information and inspiration for an influential, passionate and powerful maturity.
 
I thank you so much for your royal support. With your help, The Queen's Chronicles can maintain its mission to promote meaning, moxie, magic and majesty to women in midlife.
 
With regal blessings,
 
xxQueen Mama Donna
 
$10. Bronze Queen
- Receive my deepest appreciation
 
$25. Copper Queen
- Receive my utmost gratitude
 
$50. Silver Queen        
- Receive a complimentary copy of The Queen of My Self
 
$100. Gold Queen
- Receive a complimentary copy of The Queen of My Self
- Plus a Queen T Shirt
 
$500. Platinum Queen
- Receive a complimentary copy of The Queen of My Self
- Plus a Queen T Shirt
- Plus a Queen Tote Bag
- Plus a vial of The Queen's Oil of Empowerment
 
$1000. Diamond Queen
- Receive a complimentary copy of The Queen of My Self
- Plus a Queen Tote Bag filled with Queenly Treasures from The Queen's Emporium:
- T Shirt
- Spa Set
- Empowerment Oil
- Women Rulers of the World
- A pair of Swarovski Crystal Crown Earrings
 
CLICK HERE TO DONATE
  OR
SEND A TAX DEDUCTIBLE DONATION:
Send a check made out to Franklin Furnace Archives (my fiscal sponsor).
Put for: Donna Henes In the subject line.
 
Mail to:
Franklin Furnace Archives, Inc.
The James E. Davis Arts Building
80 Hanson Place #301
Brooklyn, NY 11217-1506
 
You will receive a receipt for your taxes. Make sure you include your email and mailing address.


THANK YOU!
I really want to thank you again for creating/holding a space of trust and support. It was because I felt safe that the sharing was so true. Thank for your gentle nudging, it taught me new ways of dealing with things. Much love & thanks always,
- Cat, NY
 
Are you looking for meaning, moxie, magic and majesty in midlife?

Consult the
Midlife Midwife


bio portrait

The transition from Maiden and Mother to Queen can be a difficult one, fraught with hard lessons and lots of loss. It takes great determination and courage to confront and embrace the changes brought about by the midlife passage.

It can be really helpful during this confusing time to have the inspiration, advice and encouragement of a counselor/coach/mentor - someone who has been there and done that and is ready to help you do the same.

Queen Mama Donna offers upbeat, practical and ceremonial guidance for individual women and groups who want to enjoy the fruits of an enriching, influential, purposeful, passionate, and powerful maturity.


WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM THE QUEEN'S COUNSEL
 
Ever since I first introduced The Queen as a helpful archetype for midlife women, I have received hundreds of requests for detailed instructions on how to become a Queen.
 
"Dear Mama Donna," women would write, "I want to be a Queen, too. How do I access my power? How can I feel good about myself? How do I change my life? How do I find magic and spiritual wisdom? How do I know what to do? How do I learn how to rule?"
 
The reality is that I cannot possibly know how anyone else will attain her Queendom, I only know how I came into mine, and that is largely through hindsight. The truth, my truth, at least, is that there is no one true truth. We must each find our own way in this world.
 
As a shaman, I teach through example, but not through dictum. I can and do offer information, exposure, personal experience, encouragement, inspiration, suggestions and support to my constituents, but I cannot - dare not - pass judgment or establish rules and laws. It is simply not for me to say.
 
When you come to me for help and spiritual guidance, I listen to your concerns and embrace your needs. I pat you on the back, give you a good, swift kick in the butt, or let you cry on my shoulder, as needed. I can tell you what I did in such and such situation, how I did it, what I learned from this or that lesson, but I cannot tell you what you should do. How do I know what your soul needs?
 
Only you know what you know. I can, of course, aid you in reaching into the well of your own deepest wisdom, and help you to hear the messages from your best inner Selves. And I can offer tools and practices to help you develop the confidence to follow your own purpose, path, passion and power.
 
A woman who I have been working with recently told me that I had changed her life. "Well, no, of course, I didn't, honey," I assured her. "You changed your own life." The fact of the matter remains that I could not give her what was not already hers.
 
xxQMD

TURN YOUR MIDLIFE CRISIS INTO YOUR CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT!

Further information: www.thequeenofmyself.com
Click on Individual Consultations.

Sessions are available in person and by phone. To make an appointment, call 718-857-1343 or email the Queen at [email protected]

As you begin to understand the immense power and love you hold inside, you will find an unending surge of joy, light and love that will nourish and support you all the days of your life.
- Susan Jeffers 



A Queen Event
Near You


group
  Isis Institute Queens,
Austin, TX

DECEMBER
 
GLOBAL
 
DECEMBER 1-31
MAMA DONNA'S HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAROT CLUB
1/3 off reading for December Birthdays. In person or by phone.
For info: 718-857-1343
[email protected]
 
NEW YORK
 
DECEMBER 1 - 31
MAMA DONNA'S SPIRIT SHOP OPEN HOUSE
Shop for all of your seasonal gift and ritual needs.
Mama Donna's Tea Garden & Healing Haven
Park Slope, Exotic Brooklyn, NY
For info: 718-857-1343
[email protected]
By appointment only!
GIFT CERTIFICATES AVAILABLE.

DECEMBER 18
FRIDAY, 7:00 - 10:00PM
TAROT SALON
Mama Donna offers 15-minute readings for only $25!
Free wine and refreshments.
Kris Waldherr Art and Words
1501 Newkirk Avenue
(entrance on Marlborough Road, around the corner)
Brooklyn, NY 11226
For info: 347-406-5811

DECEMBER 21
MONDAY, 12:30PM
35th ANNUAL WINTER SOULSTICE CELEBRATION
KEEPING THE FIRES BURNING FOR PEACE
A Celestially Auspicious Occasion with Mama Donna & Friends. Celebrate the first moment of winter - it gets lighter from here on! Drum up the spirit. Bring drums, percussion, children, positive energy. A family friendly event.
Bowling Green, Manhattan
Free

FEBRUARY


GLOBAL
 
FEBRUARY 1-28
MAMA DONNA'S HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAROT CLUB
1/3 off reading for February Birthdays. In person or by phone.
For info: 718-857-1343
[email protected] 

WASHINGTON
 
FEBRUARY 13
SATURDAY, 1:30PM -4:30PM
WOMEN OF WISDOM CONFERENCE
MEANING, MOXIE AND MAJESTY IN MIDLIFE
Workshop and Royal Coronation Ceremony.
Seattle, Washington

APRIL
 
GLOBAL
 
APRIL 1-30
MAMA DONNA'S HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAROT CLUB
1/3 off reading for April Birthdays. In person or by phone.
For info: 718-857-1343
[email protected]

CONNECTICUT
 
APRIL 29 - MAY 2
THURSDAY EVENING - SUNDAY  BELTAINE FESTIVAL: A PAGAN ODYSSEY
Mama Donna is a guest workshop leader and ritualist. Hosted by the Panthean Temple.
For information: 203-660-1369
[email protected]
www.paganodyssey.com



crownalone

Have Crown,
Will Travel!


To discuss booking Queen Mama Donna for a reading, presentation, workshop, or a keynote address in your area, call her at 718-857-1343 or e-mail her at [email protected]
 
group

Can a room filled with women ever be completely silent? The answer is: if Mama Donna is talking, yes! Mama Donna kept 40 of us enchanted, enthralled and empowered throughout her workshop, 'Queen of My Self.' Long live the Queen(s)!
- Amber Grey, Co-Chair
Unitarian Universalist Womenspirit Institute
HIghlands, NC



The Queen's Emporium


Anita Roddick

Make sure to visit The Queen's Emporium, which specializes in all manner of elegant, practical, and frivolous goods to fulfill all the royal needs and fantasies of The Queen of Your Self. Therein you will find a choice collection of goods to augment and accessorize your royal prerogative.

Anoint, Adorn, Enjoy!

The Queen's Oil of Empowerment is a dandy little ritual. Every morning I bless my Self before going out into the world. It helps me stay in a place of personal sovereignty.
- Charlene, UT
 
My women's group starts every meeting by blessing each other with power.
- Faye, ME
 
THE QUEEN'S OIL OF EMPOWERMENT

A ritual in a bottle. Use this oil to bless your Self with the sovereignty that you seek. Made by Queen Mama Donna, herself.
2 oz. bottle in gauze bag
$35 (Includes shipping in the USA)


bottle

 I N G R E D I E N T S
Oil of Rose to stimulate the blossoming of your spirit
Oil of Myrrh to heal all old wounds to the heart, so that you can keep it open with safety
Oil of Dragon's Blood for passion, power and purpose
Four Carnelians to stimulate your physical and sexual energy, eloquence and enhanced charisma
A Tongue of Fire (Lengua de Fuego) Seed to remind you to speak your truth
Two Blue Corn Seeds for growth, expansion and abundance
A Peon�a Seed to enhance your personal power
A Rose Thorn for protection
Cayenne for courage
Purple Glitter for joy

ORDER YOURS TODAY!

The Queen's Emporium

The Queen
on the Record


Read and listen to Queen Mama Donna's words of information and inspiration.

Regular Columns:

Always in Season
*The Huffington Post

Ask Your Mama
*
Pagan Pages
The Oracle
Catalyst
New Age Journal
UPI Religion and Spirituality

Recent Articles about QMD:

Ode
Huffington Post
Beliefnet
NY Arts Examiner
New York Times
Irregular Times: New Unfit to Print
Village Voice
Whole Life Times
Common Ground
Chicago Tribune
Houston Chronicle
The Columbia State
Bloomington Pantagraph
Lexington Herald-Leader
The Fort Meyers News-Press
The New York Observer
Boston Patriot Ledger
Minneapolis Star Tribune
ODE Magazine
BlissChick
Gaia Community
Arizona Daily Star
Variety Magazine column Stylephile feature
Martha Stewart online
CA Psychics Newsletter

Recent Articles by QMD:
Women's Wellness Magazine
Global Grind
SIBYL Magazine
In LA Magazine

Regular Articles:
Ezine Articles
Soulful Living
Selfgrowth
Shaman Portal
Global Goddess

YouTube:
Mama Donna Blesses the Fleet
Blessing of the Hudson River
Eggs on End spring Equinox Ceremony with Mama Donna
Mama Donna Blesses the Halloween Parade
Inauguration Purification Ritual. Part 1
Inauguration Purification Ritual. Part 2
Stock Exchange Blessing with Mama Donna
Mama Donna House Blessing
Mama Donna Blesses Wall Street
Mama Donna Henes, Urban Shaman
Vernal Equinox with Mama Donna
Interview with Marion Weinstein

Recent Radio Interviews:
What the Animals Tell me Radio with Flash Silvermoon
*Spirit 2 Spirit Connection Radio with Aricia La France
Intuitive Soul Radio with Laurie Huston
Passions and Possibilities
Charmed Life Radio with Victoria Moran
Nurturing the Nurturers with
It's All About Romance with Al Cole. Part II
Dr. Teena Cahill
Authors Read
Mama Donna's New Year Radio Special
Mama Donna's Christmas Radio Special
Living Juicy Radio
Positive Living Radio
Romance Radio
Journey to Self #2
Full Power Living
Journey to Self #1
Women's Radio
Mother's Day Special
Soul Connections
Karen Tate Radio Show
Studio1 Thinktank
Blogtalk Radio
KZYX Radio

Podcasts:
www.podbean.com
www.blogtalkradio.com
Women Talk Live Radio
Heal Yourself Talk Radio with Rebecca White
Personal Life Media
Podcast Directory

Blog:
Amazon
Beliefnet
Blogger
Daily OM
Gaia
Livejournal
Soulfulliving
Wordpress

Wikipedia listing:
Donna Henes

Social Networks:
Follow Queen Mama Donna on
Facebook
LinkedIn
Myspace
Twitter

Awards:
*Mama Donna's website www.DonnaHenes.net received a Best Spiritual Site Award!

Queen Mama Donna was named Baby Boom Woman Blogger to watch out for in 2008 for The Queen's Chronicles by Virtual Woman's Day!

Rewards:
You!

* indicates newest entries


Imagine Your Ad Here!

Welcome to our new advertisers:

Amber Barbara Grumet, the director of Feldenkrais Associates. Amber is an amazing body worker who will teach you methods to help you stand and walk in your center and to look and feel great.
 
Deirdre Mullane, director of Mullane Literary Associates. Deirdre is a really fabulous editor and publishing ally. She offers a full range of editorial services that will help you reach the widest potential audience.
 
Thanks, Amber and Deirdre for your support and your desire to network with our fabulous royal readers around the globe.

May you be successful in your endeavors and blessed with spiritual and material abundance.

YOUR ad in
The Queen's Chronicles!  

Would you like to reach the
5000+ Queens in our royal network across the country and around the world with information about your business?

Advertising listings in the Queen's Chronicles are available for $50/per issue with significant discounts for ongoing listings.

For more information and to place your order contact: [email protected] or call 718-857-1343.

Royal Resources
for Queenly Women

Our extended circle of Queens includes some mightily talented women. Please support them by availing yourself of their superior services and by buying their excellent products.

Dr. Susan Corso
Omnifaith spiritual insights for
 seekers and finders

Eve's Garden
Celebrating the sacred power of women's sexual energy

Feldenkrais Associates
Discover the Feldenkrais Method with Amber Barbara Grumet, director of Feldenkrais Associates. Become aware of how you move in order to improve your overall functioning. Through group lessons or individual hands-on sessions you learn to expand your potential in all areas.
For info: 212 242-2309 or [email protected]

Maguire Pubic Relations

Expertise in journalism and marketing qualifies us to position and deliver the news of our clients

Marya Leonard
Professional Tax Preparation.
Individuals and Small Businesses. 25+ years experience. Efficient, Accurate & Reasonable. 646-620-7232

Melissa Harris
Inspirational women's art and messages - Spirit Essence Portraits - Painting Outside the Lines workshops

Menopause Support Group
A community of patients, family members and friends dedicated to dealing with Menopause, together. Register for free.

MLA Editorial Services
Whether you're looking to publish with a top trade house, a prestigious academic press, or are considering self-publishing your work, we can help you shape and polish your manuscript to the highest professional standards. We specialize in serious nonfiction. More than 20-years experience.

Licensed Acupuncturist and Chinese Herbalist.Focusing on women's health and other chronic issues

Spruce Shore Cottage
Restore yourself on the Maine coast. Lovely cabin for
rent. Minutes from Acadia National Park. Ocean, sky, full kitchen. Contact
Weslea Sidon via email
or call 207-244-9897

Talking to the Goddess  
An anthology of blessings, prayers, invocations, chants, oriki and other sacred writings by 72 women (including Queen Mama Donna) from 25 different spiritual traditions. 10% of profits go towards funding the education of a female student at the University of Venda, South Africa.

Jewelry celebrating our maturing Selves, naturally seasoned to perfection! As we mature, we are more true to our Selves - and become perfectly luscious works of art! Wear yours proudly.

Specializing in Soulful Web Site Design and Creative Marketing Solutions for Soulful Businesses & Professionals

The Tarot and the Mysteries of Love and Sex by Mel Flemming
An explicitly erotic Wiccan deck that passionately and lovingly celebrates the Great Rite with illustrations of master artworks. Available in ebook, paperback,  and kindle formats.

Your Advertisement Here!

It is my hope that as more and more women rise to reign in the fullest potential of our supremacy, we will harness our purpose, passion, and power and direct it toward creating a more balanced and peaceful world. This is the legacy of Her majesty.
- QMD


Lucretia's Crown

Turn Your
Midlife Crisis
into Your Crowning Achievement!

  
Sending greetings to all for holidays filled with joy and cheer.
Happy, happy. Merry, merry. Peace on the planet. Good will to all. And to all a good light!

Best blessings of the season from the Queen Team.

  
Hail Queens!
 
It is coming up on five years since the publication of The Queen of My Self. This anniversary has sparked introspection, provoked evaluation and evoked some amazing memories.

This seems like the perfect time to share the back story of the birth of the book. 

Seizing My Sovereignty Back From Hostile Forces
 
I was, of course, thrilled when The Queen was sold to a prestigious publisher with an advance that would allow me to write full time for several months without worrying about the rent. The best part was that they committed to a vigorous promotion plan - very rare in publishing even back then.
 
My deadline was brutally tight, but necessary in order to have a big launch on Mother's Day as they had planned. I handed in the completed manuscript exactly on time. And then waited for six weeks with no word of response.
 
Something was wrong. They would never keep to the schedule at this rate. Finally I received a 12 page, single-spaced, 8 point print letter critiquing the book. Not the writing so much as the premise, the title even. "The Queen of my Self. Isn't that selfish?"
 
Uh oh.
 
This was odd and extremely frustrating since they bought the book based on a detailed outline and a full chapter synopsis, title and all, which they loved. And I delivered them precisely what I had contracted to do. 
 
The criticism was contradictory: on the one hand the rituals I described were called too personal, too spiritual. And on the other hand, my private life apparently wasn't personal enough. What are the names and stories of my lovers and my son? Basically, they wanted me to be identified by my relations to the men in my life. Please! A Queen is Her own Self.
 
My editor was a man, not yet 40. He was palpably threatened by The Queen. He finally said, "I just can't relate to this book." Duh! "It is not about you," I replied. "You don't need to be diabetic to publish a book on diabetes."
 
It was clear that there would be no support for The Queen whatsoever. I could not sit back and let it die on the vine. Besides, how could I deign to write a book about empowerment if I let that little twerp stand on my neck?
 
warrior queen

The Queen takes charge. She steps up to the situations of Her life and takes back the reins of Her power.
 
So after much research and soul searching, I paid back the advance and bought back my rights. My first three books had spanned the spectrum of publishers: one with Astro Artz, an obscure, now-defunct house; one with Avalon, a distinguished mid-level consortium; and one with Putnam, a huge publisher with many imprints. My experience with them all led me to believe that I could not do worse!
 
No sooner did I make the terrifying decision to publish the book myself, than I received an amazing affirmation of the correctness of my decision. On my way home from filing the registration papers for Monarch Press, I stopped at the post office. There in my box was a handwritten blurb for the cover of The Queen sent in completely unsolicited by Dr. Christiane Northrop!
 
The Queen chooses always to involve Herself fully in the process of Her life and living, and to actively direct the drama of Her own myth.
 
So, with my partner Daile Kaplan, I founded Monarch Press and assembled a Dream Queen Team. Daile generously shared her resources and business acumen and came up with the name, Monarch Press. Deirdre Mullane, my literary agent, supplied 20 years of publishing experience and know-how as well as brilliant editing. Patricia Smith created the gorgeous, elegant book design and branding logo, as well as the template for The Queen's Chronicles. Janet Fish designed the website and keeps it running. Janice Pemberton took on the administration and distribution.
 
Together we made a book that has won a very wide audience, critical acclaim and awards, and Amazon.com bestseller status. But most important, we operated out of our ideals and we learned invaluable lessons in the process. We were all empowered in our personal lives in one way or another.
 
Now five years, twenty-two issues of The Queen's Chronicles, hundreds of gatherings, and thousands of letters and emails later, I can honestly and proudly proclaim that The Queen of My Self has had far-reaching influence on the lives of a huge number of women. These sister Queens - you! - comprise the influential court of powerful women who are changing the world  from the inside out.
 
Knowing through Her personal experience what is true and valuable, and having learned, usually the hard way, to be proactive, She pledges Her royal Self to defend and promote all that is precious.
 
Thank you all for your support during this extraordinary journey.

Yours for the Queen of your Self,
 
signature

Before I Begin
 
I came across this essay in an old Queen computer file. I wrote it on the evening* that I began to write The Queen of My Self.
 
Before I Begin
 
I have been collecting the material for this book for more than eight years now. Ever since my 50th birthday when I first began to have the un-Crone-like revelations that eventually led me to The Queen, I have been preparing to write about Her: clipping articles, doing online and library research, talking with many hundreds of sisters-of-a-certain-age, presenting Queen Workshops and Crowning Ceremonies; spending unending hours with my thoughts, ideas, insights, conversations and dreams. But when the time came for me to think about actually sitting down to write, I realized that there were still more preparations that I needed to make.
 
Before I could write about the Queen with any moral authority, I alice crownfelt strongly that I needed to be able meet Her as an equal, face-to-face, Queen-to-Queen. I believed it was crucial for the integrity of the book that I be perfectly fluent in Her language, that I consistently walk in Her footprints and see out of Her eyes. I needed to know that I could live up to Her lofty standards - and my own. I needed, in fact, to be Her, to personify Her with all of my being, heart, mind, body and soul.
 
For it to be possible to sort through and assemble all of the sections of this Queenly project, it was imperative that all of the parts of my own life be in prime working order, as well. My spiritual, emotional, intellectual, creative, social, political selves were all functioning just fine. It was my physical self, my own body and my domestic environment that needed urgent upgrading.
 
I needed a healthy, strong and supple body to support me in my growth and it was high time that I took myself in hand. One month ago, on the New Buck Moon, I made a promise to myself to do some sort of exercise for at least an hour a day for six days a week. I was afraid that when I began to write, I would sit down at the computer in the early morning and not budge until late at night and ultimately explode into a blob of royal protoplasmic jelly. For four weeks now, I have kept to my regime of clean eating and daily-without-fail movement. And it has begun, ever so slightly, to pay off. I sleep less, and have much more energy. I am gradually firming up and svelting down. I figure that by the time the book comes out, I will be fit for a Queen.
 
Next, I cut my hair, a most common rite of passage among women. I had worn my hair short and spiky for many years and felt that it suited me well. But then, sometime during my midlife traumas I got bored with my hairdo, symbolic, no doubt, of a much deeper discontentment. I kept thinking, "Is this the way I am going to wear my hair for the rest of my life?" So for the sake of variety, I let it grow wild and I hated it for all of the three years that it was long. Then, one day, it was time and I took back control of my own self-image.
 
I most especially longed for a beautiful place in which I could entertain the Queen and luxuriate in Her exclusive company. I had been living in a series of lofts-in-constant-progress for more than three decades and I was tired of life in a construction zone. I absolutely could not write this book ankle deep in sheet rock dust. My soul cried out for a domain that both soothed and energized me. I lusted for color, so I painted a beautiful Tuscan palette of ochre, terra cotta and teal- a gigantic and daunting job for a 3150-square foot space with 20' ceilings housing a multitude of stuff. Life was hell for two months, disgustingly filthy, exhausting and way beyond my economic means, but like most important things, so worth the trouble. While I suppose this detour away from writing could be mistaken for procrastination, the Queen in me insisted on Her due.
 
As wonderful as it is to have such a large space, a palace really isn't particularly conducive to introspective ponderings and intensely concentrated writing. So I carved out a tiny 6-foot square space in a corner of my studio using soji screens. I jury-rigged a desk arrangement and a place for my files and books. The screens are covered with my collection of fabulous 1940s bark cloth that I had been saving for years in order to use for something really special. This would be it. The Queen's Chambers, I call it.
 
The wall to my right sports a cloth tapestry of Queen Nefertiti holding the Goddess Isis by the hand. And on the arched brick wall directly across from my seat hangs an old-fashioned wooden medicine cabinet with a mirrored door. The first thing I see when I enter my small retreat, is my own reflection. Inside, is my altar dedicated to the Queen. Its glass shelves are filled with images, amulets, totems and tokens of majestic power. On the desk are two ceramic goblets, gifts that say, "It is great to be Queen," along with two pewter crowns rescued from the Salvation Army, meant, perhaps, to be candle holders. My own golden wreaths, crowns and coronets from various Crowning Ceremonies are pinned to my lampshade, where they are dramatically backlit. There is a vase of dried roses and a red candle in the shape of a woman.
 
donna crown  Now, just as in my fantasy: I, Queen
  Mama Donna, freshly showered and
  coiffed, wearing a lovely silk caftan,
  a Kir Royale in a beautiful glass
  within reach, sit down to consort
  with the Queen.

 
  I light the candle.
 
  And begin.
 


*New Thunder Moon

July 17, 2004
Exotic Brooklyn, NY

The Queen's Court

moon goddess  The Queen's Court is a gathering
  of sovereign women of a certain
  age - our dear peers - who
  graciously offer information,
  guidance, inspiration and
  encouragement to each other.

 
  We Queens know what we know.
  And we know a great deal. Our
  experience has made us wise. So,
  feel free to consult with our
  cyber council/counsel when you
  are need of sage advice or wish to explore a particular topic of interest.

 
I have recently received a flurry of letters from women both asking for and offering definitions and descriptions of Queendom. Here are a few. I hope that they will spark some response from you, the loyal, royal sisterhood who comprise The Queen's Court.
 
Questions on Queendom:
 
Hi Queen Donna,
I'm not sure if this is an appropriate question. Are you really sure you are a Queen? Are you in the Royal Bloodline? If so, can you call yourself Queen because your ancestors were once related to a Royal Bloodline? But that doesn't mean you are Queen in modern days. Does it? Please clarify for me, because I am about to do research on my family Royal Bloodline also. Thanks,
- Dawn, TX
 
Dear Queen Dawn,
I am not a Queen with the sort of royal bloodline that you refer to. My royal bloodline is the one that runs through my own veins. I am the self-chosen Queen of Me. The reining Queen of My Self. The Queen is an archetype that I use in my book, The Queen of My Self, to describe a woman who steps into her sovereignty in midlife. The Queen is the ruler of Her own domain. I see Her as being not yet old, yet no longer young; but still active and sexy, vital with the enthusiasm and energy of youth. The Queen is tempered with hard-earned experience and the leavening attitudes of age. She has been forced to face and overcome obstacles and hard lessons, including Her own self-limiting tendencies, and in so doing has outgrown the boundaries of Her old self. Impatient with the unessential and restless for authenticity, She sheds all attachment to the opinions of others and accepts complete responsibility and control over Her life. She is the Queen of Her Self, the mature monarch, the sole sovereign of Her own life and destiny. And you, my sister Queen, are the Queen of your own life, as well, whether or not you discover ancestral royal blood. Every woman can ascend to her own throne and crown her own head. Our world needs as many Queens as there are women. There can't be too many Queens. With royal regards,
xxQMD
 
The mighty Queen, the great and wise, brave and compassionate woman ruler, the reigning commander of Her domain, is an expansive, expressive, accessible, energetic archetype who represents a mature female power, authority, responsibility, and influence worthy of our emulation. 
- QMD
 
Dear Queen Mama Donna,
Just out of curiosity, what is the age range to be included as a Queen? Is it only from midlife on?  I'm confused on this.
- Debby, OH
 
Dear Queen Debby,
How old is a Queen? It depends. I usually think of the Queen as a woman in her middle years, which covers a very large age range from the mid-40s through the mid 70s. But as in all things, there can be exceptions. Women who had children very young and are experiencing the empty nest in their 30s and women who have experienced premature medical menopause have told me that they face the same transitional life issues as women who are older. This emotional and physical transformation urges them toward Queendom. By the same token, women in their late 70s and even 80s have expressed a strong identification with the active and energetic Queen. Two years ago at in a ceremony at a goddess conference in Glastonbury, England, a 90- year old woman insisted on being crowned as a Queen rather than a Crone. So the bottom line is if you feel like you are a Queen, then you are! It is never too early or too late to ascend to your true power.
 
Declarations of Queendom:
 
Dear Queen,
I just coined the word regaliciously. I like the way it sounds. If Rachel Ray can get in the dictionary for EVOO, maybe I should contact the dictionary people with the new word: regalicious. What do you think?
- Linda, NY & NJ
 
Dear Queen Linda,
I love it!
Regaliciously yours,
xxQMD
 
Dear Queens,
I am a Queen. I now wear my crown. My thorns turn to jewels.
Thank you! I think I've been mostly missing the sovereignty aspect... getting it now though.
- Lisa, NY
 
Dear QMD,
What I have seen very clearly, right before my eyes over the years, is that women can indeed mature to very advanced ages, while staying lively and vital and full of fire and spunk. My great aunts and distant cousins twice removed were pistols. They didn't cause harm, but they didn't take guff from anyone. They stood their ground gracefully and powerfully and with unmatched poise. They traveled the world - alone or in pairs - when the world expected them to be propped up in a chair at a rest home. They learned foreign languages "late in life." They taught rough-and-tumble college students twice their size and weight how to conjugate verbs. They could fend for themselves, they could make their way unafraid in the world, and they weren't dependent on the approval of men or the dominant paradigm to validate their choices. They ruled their lives with an iron fist in a velvet glove, and they were deeply respected by all. Long before Donna Henes did us the wonderful service of voicing the vital concept of Queendom, these elder women of my youth were Queens. They were Queens in the purest sense of the word, and they remained so well into their 60s, 70s, even 80s.
- Kay, MA
 
As long as I live, I will have control over my being - you find the spirit of Caesar in me.
- Artemisia Gentileschi, 1593-1652
 
I would love to further this discussion. Do send in your definitions, descriptions and declarations of Queendom.

Please send your questions or responses to [email protected]. Your letters will be printed in the next Queen's Chronicles.
 

Be a Queen

Be a Queen: Own Your Power and Glory
 
Be a Queen. Dare to be different. Be a pioneer. Be a leader. Be the kind of woman who in the face of adversity will continue to embrace life and walk fearlessly toward the challenge.
 
Take it on! Be a truth seeker, and rule your domain, whatever it is - your home, your office, your family - with a loving heart.
 
Be a Queen. Be tender. Continue to give birth to new ideas and rejoice in your womanhood.
 
We are daughters of God - here to teach the world how to love.
 
It doesn't matter what you've been through, where you come from, who your parents are, or your social or economic status.
 
None of that matters. What matters is how you choose to love, how you choose to express that love through your work, through your family, through what you have to give to the world.
 
Be a Queen. Own your power and your glory.
 
- Oprah Winfrey

 

A Queen by Any Other Name

Dr. Susan Corso, sister Queen, friend, colleague and wordsmith extraordinaire sent in this extensive list of definitions taken from the Old English Dictionary.

queen, n.  RB_sunrise


A (king's) wife or consort; a lady who is wife to a king. Here the relationship of the queen to her husband is formally expressed. 
                                                                    
The wife or consort of a king. A woman who is the chief ruler of a state, having the same rank and position as a king. With additions, as queen-consort, -dowager, -dowrier, -rectrix, -regent, regnant, widow. see consort, etc.; also queen-mother. Queen Mum, colloq. alteration of queen-mother, used with affectionate reference to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother (b. 1900).                                                                                                                                                       
Queen and country: the objects of allegiance for a patriot whose head of state is a queen. ellipt. as the Queen: the national anthem God save the Queen

As a title, place immediately before a personal name; also the queen, before or after the name (now arch.). Queen Mary.  (a) Used attrib. in Queen Mary hat, a variety of toque popularized by Queen Mary (1867-1953), wife of King George V, who favoured it because it enabled the public to have a clear view of her face; so Queen Mary toque. (b) A type of long low-loading road trailer (in allusion to the Cunard passenger liner the Queens: the Cunard passenger liners, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth). With RB_look specification of the people, country, etc. ruled over by a queen or by the king her consort, as Queen of Scots, of France. Also Queen of Spain. Queen of Spain fritillary, an orange butterfly with black markings, Argynnis lathonia, belonging to the family Nymphalid� and widely distributed in Europe, N. Africa, and parts of Asia.

A female whose rank or pre-eminence is comparable to that of a queen. Applied to the Virgin Mary, esp. in phr. as Queen of glory, grace, heaven, paradise, women, etc.

Applied to the goddesses of ancient religions or mythologies; also in phrases, as queen of heaven, love, marriage, etc.

Applied to a woman as a term of endearment and honour.

A woman who has pre-eminence or authority in a specified sphere. Queen of the Bean: Queen of Hearts. Queen of the May: see May. See also beauty queen s.v. beauty n. IIIb, etc. Also, a woman who has pre-eminence in an unspecified sphere.

An attractive woman; a girl-friend, female partner. Applied to things: 1. Anything personified as a woman and looked upon as the chief, esp. the most excellent or beautiful, of its class.
2. That which in a particular sphere has pre-eminence comparable to that of a queen. queen of heaven, night, the tides, the moon; queen of puddings, a pudding made of breadcrumbs, milk, and other ingredients, freq. with a layer of meringue on top; queen-of-the-meadow(s, (a) the meadow-sweet, Filipendula ulmaria, native to Europe and Asia and naturalized in eastern North America;  (b) U.S. joe-pye weed; queen-of-the-night, a variety of night-blooming cereus, esp. Selenicereus RBgrandiflorus, which is native to the West Indies and bears fragrant white flowers; queen-of-the-prairie, a perennial North American herb, Filipendula rubra, found in meadows and prairies and bearing clusters of small pink flowers; Queen of the West: Cincinnati, Ohio (cf. Queen City in sense 14). Similarly with an of phrase to designate other cities.

The perfect female of bees, wasps, or ants.
  
In games. In chess: The piece which has greatest freedom of movement, and hence is most effective for defending the king, next to which it is placed at the beginning of the game. Also, the position on the board attained by a pawn when it is queened. queen's bishop, knight, pawn, etc. queen's gambit. In ordinary playing-cards: A card bearing the figure of a queen, of which there are four in each pack, ranking next to the kings.
   
Technical uses. 1. One of the classes into which fullers' teasels are sorted. 2. Roofing-slate, measuring three feet by two.

A class of apples, the rennets.

A small scallop, Chlamys opercularis, found off several parts of the coast of north-western Europe.

A local name for the smear-dab.

A female cat.

A male homosexual, esp. the effeminate partner in a homosexual relationship. slang.

Attrib. and Comb.

General combs. 1. appositive, as queen-bride, -county, -galley, -moon, -rose, -spirit, -spouse, -strumpet, -woman.  2. attrib., as queen-craft, -features. 3. objective, as queen-killing.

Special combs. queen-excluder, a device in a bee-hive to prevent the passage of the queen without excluding the workers; queen-fish, U.S. a small edible fish; queen-apple, an early variety of apple; queen bee, a fully developed female bee; automatically-controlled aeroplane used as a target in firing practice; queen-bird, a swan; queen-cage, an apparatus for conveying or transferring a queen-bee to a hive; queen-cake, a small currant-cake, usually heart-shaped; queen cat; queen-cell, a cell in a bee-hive, in which the queen is reared; Queen City N. Amer., an epithet applied to the chief or pre-eminent city (of a region); queen closer, a quarter of a brick, used in building toRB close the end of a course; queen conch, a large marine shell, Strombus gigas; Seriphus politus) found along the Pacific coast of America; a large Australian marine fish, Scomberoides sanctipetri, of the family Carangid�; queen-gold, a former revenue of the king's consort, consisting of one-tenth on certain fines paid to the king; queen-lily, a Peruvian ornamental flowering plant of the genus Ph�dranassa; queen olive, the particularly large fruit of certain varieties of olive; queen-pigeon = queen's pigeon; queen-pin colloq., a woman who controls the successful organization of a specified institution or event; queen pudding = queen's pudding; queen scallop; queen-side. Chess, of or pertaining to the side of the board in which both queens start the game; queen-size, an extra large size, though occas. in a series (as of beds), smaller than king-size; also queen-sized adj.; queen staysail, a triangular main topmast staysail in a schooner yacht; queen-stitch, a fancy stitch in embroidery; queen substance, a pheromone produced by a queen bee and given to the colony's workers to prevent the production of more queens; queen-suit, a set of cards belonging to one suit, of which the queen is the highest; queen trigger-fish, a deep-bodied, blue and yellow marine fish, Balistes vetula, found in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans; queen-truss, a roof-truss in which there are queen-posts; queen-wasp, a perfect female wasp; queenwood, an Australian evergreen tree, Daviesia arborea, of the family Leguminos�, or its wood.

Combinations with queen's name in titles or appellations, with the sense of belonging to, in the service of, the queen, royal, as Queen's advocate, bench, counsel, evidence, highway, keys, letter, messenger, pay, peace, prison, servant, speech, wardrobe. In these terms, as in many of those given under b, the use of queen's in place of king's is largely or entirely a result of the long reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901) or that of Queen Elizabeth II (1952- ). Queen's allowance; queen's arm, a musket; queen's chair, a makeshift seat (cf. queen's cushion); queen's cloth; queen's colours, one of the pair of colours carried by a regiment, the royal colours; queen's conch = queen conch; queen's cushion, a seat (for a girl) made by the crossed hands of two persons; Queen's English, the English language regarded as under the guardianship of the Queen; hence, standard or correct English; queen's evil = king's evil, scrofula; queen's gambit: queen's game; Queen's Guide, a holder of the highest award in Guiding, spec. RBduring the reign of a queen; queen's head, a postage stamp; queen's metal, an alloy of tin, antimony, bismuth, and lead; queen's own, Government property or provisions; queen's parade, the quarter-deck (ibid.); queen's pattern; queen's pigeon, a large and beautiful crested pigeon of the Papuan region, Gaura Victori�; queen's pipe, a furnace formerly used for destroying smuggled or damaged tobacco; queen's pudding, a steamed suet pudding (occas. used for queen of puddings); Queen's Scout, a holder of the highest award in Scouting, spec. during the reign of a queen; queen's shilling, a shilling formerly given to a recruit when enlisting; queen's staysail = queen staysail; queen's stuff; queen's taste: in phr. to the or a queen's taste, to perfection; queen's tobacco pipe = queen's pipe; queen's ware, (a) a cream-coloured kind of Wedgwood ware; (b) a kind of stone-ware; queen's weather, fine weather; queen's woman slang (now Hist.), a prostitute who received medical attention under the terms of the Contagious Diseases Acts of the 1860s; queen's yellow, turpeth mineral, used as a yellow pigment.

In names of plants, as queen's balm, alyssum; queen's berry, the cloudberry, Rubus Cham�morus; queen's cushion, cut-leaved saxifrage; queen's delight, an American euphorbiaceous plant, Stillingia sylvatica; queen's flower, an Indian tree (Lagerstrœmia Flos-Regin�) with beautiful rose-coloured flowers; queen's gilliflower or July-flower, dame's violet, Hesperis Matronalis; queen's herb , tobacco; queen's lace U.S., the wild carrot or Queen Anne's lace, Daucus carota; queen's pincushion, the flowers of the guelder rose; queen's root = queen's delight ; queen's violet = queen's gilliflower.

 

Yikes!

All paintings are by Robyn Bellospirito

The Queen

Not only in England-Qnzinga card
Let us have queens everywhere!
 

Queen of Africa
Queen of Afghanistan 
Queen of America
Queen of Arabia
Queen of the Argentine
Queen of China
Queen of Columbia
Queen of Egypt
Queen of Germany
Queen of Guatemala
Queen of Iraq
Queen of Israel
Queen of Italy
Queen of Japan
Queen of Mongolia
Queen of Palestine
Quuen of Russia
Queen of Spain
Queen of Syria
 
Queen of the World
Queen of the Universe
Queen of each and every Self -
Queen N'zinga, Angola
To You I bow down.
 
- Janine Canan
                                                                 
The Queen's Correspondence

 moon goddess

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond to The Queen's Chronicles. Please keep your comments coming. And do feel free to make suggestions about content you would like to see. Or anything else, for that matter. It is a joy to connect with you.


Letters In Response To
The November 2009 Issue:

Thank you for this wonderful email! I too love food, cooking and the energetics of food. What intrigues and excites me most of all are the relationships we each have with food. I am fortunate to own what is stated on the first page as a facsimile of the first edition of The Boston Cooking School Cook Book 1896 by Fannie Merritt Farmer. It is amazing how all the old truths about food are coming in full circle again. Peace,
- Karyn, MA
 
Hope you had a joyous Thanksgiving. I'm finally done with my leftovers! Can you get over Martha Washington's recipes? Who was she cooking for? The army, right? Very interesting. Please put my Mom, Betty in the Circle of Concern. Thank you,
- Nancy, NC
 
Just wanted to weigh in on who fixed Martha Washington's famous cake. You know she and her husband owned lots of enslaved Africans. Guess who separated the eggs, beat the mix, made the fire, baked the cake, etc.? Those same enslaved Africans who never get mentioned for doing the actual work involved in these recipes. Someone you might want to profile: Olney Judge, an enslaved African owned by Washington. Martha wanted to give this woman to one of her (Martha's) daughters for a present! The enslaved woman successfully ran away to New Hampshire (I think). Her wonderful story is told in Philadelphia at the site of the first White House. I also wanted to thank you for the wonderful newsletter. I look forward to receiving it every month. I made sure copies of your book The Queen of My Self were ordered at my local library. I loved it. Thank you also for including the incredible outpouring of response to the bombing of the moon. I was so encouraged to see that so many others were pained by that assault. I thought it was just me. Thank you for being an inspiration.
- Linda, NY & NJ
 
I'm grateful to have Donna Henes out there! What a wealth of information you bestow. Thank you.
- Susan, NY
 
A friend sent me your Queenly Chronicles. May I please subscribe? I quite enjoyed the readings, thoughts and quotes and such. With aloha,
- Amy, HI

I don't always get a chance to read my Queen's Chronicles right away, so I just sat down and read it now. WOW! I really loved this particular issue; it really resonated with me. Thanks for keeping me on the list. 
- Deni, NY

Please send your responses to [email protected].
Your letters will be printed in the next Queen's Chronicles.


Kudos to the Queens!

clapping hands rotated
 
  The especial genius of women I believe
  to
be electrical in movement, intuitive in
  function, spiritual in tendency.
  - Margaret Fuller

 

Jerri Allyn, CA; Ann Bean, England; Camille Billops, NY; Josely Carvalho, NY & Brazil;  Mary Beth Edelson, NY; Lorraine O'Grady, NY; Sophia Schultz, PA; Karen Shaw, NY; Peggy Shaw, NY; Patricia Smith, NY; Annie Sprinkle, CA; Elizabeth Stephens, CA; Lois Weaver, NY;
and Nina Yankowitz, NY; on the exhibitions of their work.
 
Dee Sunshine, Scotland,
The Book of Hopes and Dreams (Book),  on her new publication.
 
Shelley Ackerman. NY,
on her new radio show, Karmic Relief; and Lisa Nichols, CA, on her new TV program, Breakthrough.
 
Chris Countryman, NY,
on the birth of her first granddaughter, Penelope; and Saundra Mandel, CA, on the birth of her second granddaughter, Vivienne Shayna.
 
Diane Green, NY,
on the production of A Midsummer's Night Dream by The Children's Shakespeare Company that she directs.
 
Janet Fish, NY,
on her accreditation as a Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographer.
 
Barbara Moore, NY,
on receiving the Creative Capital/Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant. 

Jennifer Jackson, NC,
on her move south for her exciting new job.

Send your good news, achievements, accomplishments, successes and  celebrations so that our international circle of sovereign sisters can send you blessings and accolades.
 
And we are glad to so. It is a joy and a privilege to share in the fortune of another woman. I recently heard Oprah say the saddest thing ever - "The hardest thing about being successful is having someone to be glad for you."

It takes a centered and confident Queen to break that pattern. There are 60 million thrones out there. One for each of us. There is plenty of purpose, passion and power for us all. May we use it well!

It is important that you recognize your progress and take pride in your accomplishments. Share your achievements with others. Brag a little. The recognition and support of those around you is nurturing.
- Rosemarie Rossetti
 

Circle of Concern

clapping hands rotated 
 
  Please Offer Your Purest
  Thoughts, Your
Heart-Felt
  Prayers, Your Great Good

  Feelings, And Your Very Best
  Blessings
For Healing and Peace
  of Mind To:

 

Amy, NY; Betty, AL; Carol, NY; Cat. NY; Chrissie, NY; Deirdre, NY; Devidam NY; Edie, PA; Ellen, NY; Gail, OH; Geraldine, ID; Glenys, Australia; Jill, PA; Jo, AZ; Kimi, NJ; Letitia, VA; Linda, NY; Lucia, TX; Lynne, NY; Reid, DE; Shari, NY; Shirley, IN; Smriti, CA; Susan, NY; Terry, NY;
and Yvette, NY; who are in the process of healing themselves from illness, accident, injury or surgery.
 
The caregivers who are in weary need of care themselves:
Amy, NY; Daile, NY; Kayla, NY; Lee, NJ; Lois, NY; Margo, NY; Meryl, NY, Nancy, NC;
and Roslyn, NJ.

With Sincere Condolences:

Louise Fishman, NY
Jane Hefferman, NY
Kay Turner, NY
Heather White, NY
   
Please send your requests for physical and spiritual healing and positive energy so that the powerful women of The Queen's Court might send their prayers and blessings to you in your time of need.
 
One kind word can warm three winter months.
-Chinese Proverb


Where the Queens Are

moon goddess

MICHIGAN


Three years ago I was the keynote speaker at a Unitarian Universalist WomenSpirit Conference in Chicago. A few months after the conference, the coordinator, Renae Rebechini, sent me this portfolio of pictures of the artwork of Butterfly Peggy Stevens who had lovingly altered her copy of The Queen of My Self. Or should I say, "altared" it?  

book dedication

rev to her

book queens

book qmd

- Butterfly Peggy Stevens, MI


Please Submit Your Royal Reports

Tell us about your Queen Group: who, what, where,
when, why?
What Queenly topics do you explore?
What projects do you engage in?
Describe some golden moments.
Send pictures!