Ode to the Red Hat Society
Written by Sue Ellen Cooper, Queen Mother, Red Hat Society

A poet put it very well. She said when she was older,
She wouldn't be so meek and mild. She threatened to get bolder.
She'd put a red hat on her head, and purple on her shoulder.
She'd make her life a warmer place, her golden years much golder.

We read that poem, all of us, and grasped what she is saying.
We do not need to sit and knit, although we all are graying.
We think about what we can do. Our plans we have been laying.
Instead of working all the time, we'll be out somewhere playing.

We take her colors to our hearts, and then we all go shopping
For purples clothes and hats of red, with giant brims a-flopping.
We're tired of working all the time, and staying home and mopping.
We order pies and chocolate fudge, and rich desserts with topping.
We crown ourselves as duchesses and countesses and queens.
We prove that playing dress-up isn't just for Halloween.
We drape ourselves in jewels, feathers, boas, and sateen.
We see ourselves on television and in magazines.

We laugh, we cry, we hug a lot. We keep each other strong.
When one of us goes out for fun, the rest all go along.
We gad about, we lunch and munch, in one big happy throng.
We've found the place where we fit in, the place we all belong.

When I Am an Old Woman

When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn't go and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I am tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people's gardens
And learn to spit.
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and a pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We will have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old and start to wear purple.

By Jenny Joseph
http://www.wheniamanoldwoman.com/pages/348545/index.htm

Friendship Recipe
By Queen Rose - Marsha J. Whiting
Purple Personalities in Red Hats #20489
Denison, Texas From: Red Hat Recipe Exchange

“A Red Hat Gathering!”

Ingredients:
Red Hat Spirit
Purple Passion
Laughter
Hattitude
Zaniness
Caring
Sharing
Kazoos
Feathers
Red & Pink Hatted Sisters

Directions: Take a generous helping of Red Hat Spirit, and add in two measures of Purple Passion. Mix with a heaping portion of Laughter, and stir together with spoon of Hattitude. Add a zesty dish of Zaniness, sprinkle on Caring and Sharing. Place it all in the gloved hands of Red and Pink Hatted Sisters. Bake in an unbreakable dish of Friendship, in a Warm and Inviting Red Hat Gathering. Garnish with Kazoos and Feathers. Enjoy!

Yield: Unlimited Servings.
Preparation time: Fun Time
Blend time: Giggle Time
Total time: Time of Our Lives

Lil 'Ol Ladies, We're Not!
by D. Vanderpool

We're a group of Fun Ladies
Who enjoy life a lot
And Priss and Prudey
We're definitely not.

So if you're over fifty
And looking for fun
We're called the Red Hatters
And you can be one.

We dress in purple outfits
And a brilliant red hat
And meet once a month
To just chew the fat.

It's dinner and shows
As a group on the town
Come join us for laughter
We won't let you down.

We're the Hug Club Red Hatters
Of Las Vegas Nevada
With fun, laughts and good times
And no yada yada.