Twice, last Spring, I had lunch with a few friends. We’re all women, between 40 and 50 years old. We hadn’t been together in person for…well, let’s just say a long time.
We shifted our attention to each person in turn, leaning in eagerly, asking, “And what about YOU? What have you been up to?!”
Because every single person was doing something incredible. Two were starting University degrees, one for the first time. Two had started jobs outside the home for the first time since their kids were born. Three were launching their grown children; one was an empty nester. Two had ended marriages and were embracing their single lives. All were significantly reevaluating their religious beliefs. New haircuts, new clothes, new therapists, new partners all testified to much deeper identity shifts.
It was honestly one of the most moving conversations I’ve ever been a part of. Because even though they spoke of fear, discomfort, massive challenges…they were happy. I drove away in awe, thinking to myself, “Middle-aged women are AMAZING.”
Then, through the Fall, I had multiple conversations with women in their twenties and thirties, knee deep in motherhood, juggling jobs, kids, households, businesses. Overwhelmed by the constant demands, but always somehow stretching themselves. Generous, empathetic, eager to give their children everything they possibly could.
After about the third one, I remember thinking, “Huh. It’s not just middle-age. All women are amazing.” And they are.
The thing about me is that I’m caught, oddly, between those two groups. I’m solidly middle-aged, I’m starting my own business in a brand new field. But, I also have a toddler and I’m doing school drop off and running to activities every night.
There are seasons in our lives, as women, when we’re consumed by the details of daily life and the unrelenting needs of everyone around us. There are seasons when all of that fades away and we have to step out into entirely new opportunities, maybe to find ourselves again, maybe to find ourselves anew. There are innumerable beginnings and endings, a constantly evolving set of priorities. Sometimes it feels like nothing will ever change. Sometimes we can barely catch our breath.
I’m living through that.
And I’ve been thinking about what made those Spring lunches so powerful for me and it’s this: A space to process my life, to be seen by others, and remember that I’m not alone. So powerful. So important.
That’s what I’d like to offer you.
I’m starting a course in February, called Create a Clearing. It’s a chance for women to create a little clearing, a little space, in their lives to listen to themselves. A chance to remember who you are, listen to your own heart. And to do it in the presence of other women.
Six weeks. Time for real reflection. Time to get to know each other. Time to make decisions that will honour who we are and who we’re becoming.
No matter what stage of life you’re in, if you need a clearing, you are welcome to join us.
To learn more, or to register, click here.