Beach Group this year takes a look at being an older woman, a woman over fifty. As we gather and discuss archetype images, cultural images, and our own feelings and fears about being considered an older woman, a part of us finds it hard to believe we’ve really been around that long. As one goddess remarked, “I may be getting older, but I refuse to grow up.”
Inside, there’s still a playful spirit very much alive. And there’s a growing sense that we are in our power years….Grandmothers, wisewomen, elders, seasoned and skilled in Life’s schools.
For others, there is apprehension of getting older. We notice shifts in our interests and perceptions. Indeed, author Jean Shinoda Bolen wrote Goddesses in Older Women because she saw and felt those shifts in herself–expanding her understanding of Goddess in Everywoman she had written of earlier.
Her original volume was not intended as a spiritual text. She’s a medical doctor, a Jungian analyst, and a scholar. She wrote to help women understand themselves; and archetypes provided a vehicle to connect all the worlds she knew…including those of the women who showed up in private practice. It was later she met the Great Mother goddess and the spiritual element of these ancient archetype images.
It was in Monday’s conversation that a need surfaced–and an assignment. We need images of women over fifty for ourselves, role models, women we admire who are (or were) vibrant, passionate, alive, fulfilled, beautiful, and any other attributes we need to envision for ourselves. I call it creating a ‘Wall of Inspiration, ‘ even if it’s an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper. Women have never lived in a time like this before. We need visuals, faces of older women; role models of inspiration; and we need each other. We are in our power years…together…and it good. We are needed. Many wisewomen goddesses have inspired me. Who are those who’ve inspired you? Create your own ‘Wall of Inspiration.’ Have fun and be inspired!
Blessings – Anne