When Rosalie Schweiker was undertaking her Full Moon Reflection, Plants Leave You Voice Notes, she invited women from the Physic Garden Network to perform as the plants she had selected. Riaz Begum was selected to speak as Hawthorn as she had previous experience drinking hawthorn tea and feeling herself transformed as if she had become the herb itself.
Riaz was initially unwell and unable to take on, once again, the mantle of performance as Hawthorn. But in regaining health, she drank a hawthorn tea, performed the role as Rosalie had written it, and then – taken over with the plant's strength of heart – went on to write this poem, an artwork from within an artwork.
The meadow is bathed in soothing sunlight.
Radiant green grass twinkles and sparkles
where the recent raindrops cling to linger.
Huddled side by side as nature intended
we grow in close-knit teaming hedgerows
Our roots are strong, deep and intertwined
I am clothed in blushing, fresh pink blossom;
My sister in abundant lily white clusters.
The atmosphere adorned by our presence
Each colourless drop glistens bright beneath.
It mirrors the early tender morning light;
the swaying bright lush verdant branches;
fresh, white and rose-pink fragrant blossom.
A silent rhythm, persuading sweet shrill notes
of birds far and near, welcoming the daybreak.
As the breeze swings and deflects our branches,
together, we emit a heady scent into the air
Like a silent prayer unto our Generous Creator
who has blessed our being with powerful healing
The polished green leaves, carved like helping hands,
hide my protection: needle-sharp piercing thorns.
As autumn follows all the blossom will fall and mulch,
giving way to the ruby-red glowing berries
for the robin, thrush and the hungry blackbird;
for humans to enjoy a hot mug of herby tonic
to strengthen and warm a weakening heart.
– Riaz Begum Sheikh, 5th Ramadan 1441, 15 March 2024
When Riaz was a child in Pakistan, her grandfather used to feed her laddu when she read poems. As an adult, she worked for years in the UK teaching art but it wasn't until she begun as a youth worker in Blackburn that her background in poetry reemerged. She asked the young people she cared for to write poems and made sure creativity was always an opportunity for them. During the pandemic, she and a friend challenged themselves to write a poem every month and they were invited to read these out on Pendle Community Radio.
Idle Women met Riaz Begum when we first founded in 2015. When, in 2019, the National Lottery Community Fund invited us to apply to be part of the People's Project, a collaboration with ITV, where the viewing public can vote for a project to win £50,000, Riaz and other women came together to help lead our campaign for votes. This campaign took us to many women's centres and Riaz and the group went on to form the Idle Women Sisterhood, a guiding group who remain integral even today.
Riaz is a poet, an artist and a cornerstone of Idle Women's network.
Photographs: (previous page) Rachel Anderson; (this page) all Rachel Anderson