Female Solidarity = Girl Power!
With age, I’m steadily gaining wisdom. This, I know most assuredly. The strongest example I can provide is
my more recent realization of how very, very much feminine camaraderie there is in the
world.
My discovery of this was reached as a result of my online
interactions; where the encouragement and kindness I have found has been remarkably
amazing. Sure, some of my contacts
are from beloved family and dear friends (which are every bit as valuable to
me!). What has opened my eyes, though, is how folks,
who I have only met via the online sphere, can touch my soul so deeply through
their ongoing, extraordinary expressions of friendship and support of my
artistic endeavors. Most are women
on journeys similar to mine who are expressing themselves creatively, yearning
to live a more mindful life and seeking the joy found within a community of
women who truly embody the term “sisterhood.”
I try to focus on the positive. But, historically, when asked the question of whether or not
women stand in solidarity, my mind has generally raced toward those isolated instances
of interactions that were less than pleasant. Many have been encountered in the workplace, and, most sadly,
too many of them have been with fellow femmes. I have worked in corporate,
government and non-profit settings.
And, although most of the unsavory stuff occurred in the corporate
realm, I have experienced a spot of unpleasantness in all three settings (along
with others as well, of course).
When I stop and ponder the issue further, though; I know the
reality of the situation is quite different. Over the years, there have been far more occasions of fellowship, support and joy experienced than
not—and the lion’s share of this has most definitely come from other women. In fact, some of my closest friends are
women I have met as a result of my professional undertakings. My “aha” comes from a realization that
there are many, many more of us women willing to be allies to one another than
not. This understanding has become
more visible to me as a result of the wonderful things I have witnessed in
these past few months via this blog and over the last several years on Twitter.
It has exceeded my most ideal of
expectations.
The action I am taking, now, is to banish the small number
of negative memories I am holding onto—no longer give them importance. Yup, I am replacing them with the abundantly
present, brighter ones—granting them the weight they so rightly deserve.
By doing so, I am acknowledging the strong predominance of feminine
camaraderie in this world. The
impetus for this comes from the assortment of splendid things that have
happened, right here, online.
Thanks, Friends, for your part in this! Joy, peace and happy "little Friday!" T.
