The Joy of Womanhood!

In every aspect of life I believe there is a lesson to be learnt and I have learnt one over the years that I feel I need to share. Many call me a feminist, some an activist, but I am neither. I simply celebrate womanhood, which for me is a very central aspect to my identity, my success and my self-esteem. Womanhood is an aspect to be enjoyed. Now I only speak of womanhood so much because I have experienced the love and care of strong, powerful women at various stages of my life and it is to them that I pay tribute to today. For me to be able to keep this smile on my face I owe it to the “IRON LADIES” (I hope you watched the Liberian movie) of my life. I want to see my sisters excel. I want to see them rise up beyond patriarchy, beyond stereotypes, beyond stigma and discrimination, beyond inferiority complex, beyond all this, and just simply enjoy womanhood. The joy of giving birth, the joy of caring, the joy of laughing, the joy of having best friends, the joy of sharing pain and all the other joys that womanhood has to offer. As women we often focus on prejudices in our lives that prevent us from seeing the bigger picture. India Arie says “let’s shake free (of) this gravity of resentment and fly high on the wings of forgiveness”. Let us forgive those that look down upon women, that abuse physically and emotionally, that don’t honour womanhood for its beauty and grace.
Women have worries and insecurities that can cause one to do harmful things to them. I say NO! We need metanoia- a change of mind that will eventually change our actions. Winnie Mandela says, “If your man is a wizard, then you must become a witch”. Let us go side by side with our counterparts. Sometimes it requires depths of oppression to create heights of character and I believe that this is where the glory of women is going to manifest itself from. We are truly responsible for what we experience. Overlook the faults of others and overcome your own and let us forward on.