Girlfriends       

Every so often someone or several people to be quite honest will send me an email about girlfriends. I’m sure you’ve all been sent the same email once, twice or a hundred times. There’s even National Girlfriends Week which celebrates the legendary ‘connection or bond’ between girlfriends.

Friendships between women, like all friendships, need to be nurtured.  There are many women who I count amongst my friends, but I don’t have that special girlfriend that legend speaks about.  The one who’s supposed to call me several times a week so we can just talk or vice versa. The one who drags me out of the house to go to the mall or to the movies for a chick flick. The girlfriend who shows up on Sunday afternoon with her husband for an impromptu dinner. We would plan an evening out on the town with our mates or a summer cruise we all go on together.  She isn’t here or anywhere in my life and I dearly miss her absence. Whoever she is, was, or is supposed to be, her not being here for me creates an undeniable void in my life.

I didn’t notice her absence too much until I moved 1800 miles away from my family and the area I grew up in. I think I knew she wasn’t around even then, but since I was still near my mom and dad I didn’t dwell on it.  Now I’ve lived here for almost four years connected to my family by telephone and email, and I’ve come to miss her more than ever.

A girlfriend is someone who you can talk to about almost anything and everything. A girlfriend won’t judge you and she isn’t afraid to tell you when you’re wrong. There are things that only a girlfriend can understand – no matter how much your man says you can tell him anything. Don’t fall for that one – their capacity to understand the emotional ranges a woman goes through are limited at best.

The bottom line is I miss the girlfriend I’m supposed to have, and I wish she’d get here real soon. We have lots to talk about.

Contest – Enter Now!

Please help name the section of the Newsletter which will showcase new and emerging poets and authors. It is currently entitled Coming of Age, but I would like something that represents hope, fun, the future, and the desire to be center stage. The winning entry will win a free copy of

In Search Of Good Men  

As a single, professional African American woman I have often queried, "Where are all the good Black men?" Of course the answer is usually the same: with women of other ethnic origins, married, gay, or in prison. I found myself disappointed time and time again by the men I was meeting. It did not matter the education level or economic status, I had begun to wonder if all men were truly jerks. I honestly did not expect to find a prince charming where I did. The one man who could carry on an intelligent conversation, an insightful man. A man of strength and conviction, who was still an old-fashioned romantic.  I did not expect to find him three weeks out of prison and tied to his mother's house by an electronic monitoring device...

Put your thinking caps on and send me your best suggestion at

contests@rmoreenclarke.com  Don’t forget to include your name along with your suggestion.

Winner will be announced in the next issue.

Look for more exciting contests and free giveaways coming soon!

Thanks for subscribing to The Amethyst!! Enjoy the day!

Coming in the next newsletter:

A new Moreen’s Insights

More poetry by Infinite Self and other new artists

Book Review – Memoirs Of A Geisha