September marks the beginning of the school year. And even if we have not attended classes in ages, we are still affected through our children and grand kids, as well as our own memories.

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Imagine a woman
Until we imagine something, it remains an impossibility. Once imagined, it becomes our experience.

Imagine a woman
who loves herself. 

A woman who gazes with loving kindness upon her past and present, body and needs, ideas and emotions. Whose capacity to love others  deepens as she extends loving kindness to herself.

Imagine a woman 

who accepts herself. A woman who turns a merciful eye toward her own secrets, successes, and shortcomings. Whose capacity to live non-judgmentally deepens as she is merciful toward herself.

Imagine a woman who participates in her own life with interest and attention. A woman 

who turns inward to listen, remember, and replenish. Whose capacity to be available deepens as she is available to herself.

Imagine a woman who remains faithful to herself through the seasons of life. A woman who preserves allegiance to herself even when opposed. Whose capacity to sustain interest in others deepens as she is loyal to herself.

Imagine a woman who bites into her own life and the fullness of its possibility. A woman 

who has opened to the depths of goodness within her. Who affirms the original goodness of her children until the stories of old hold no sway in their hearts. 

Imagine a community of women who rock the world by giving birth to images of inclusion, poems of truth, rituals of healing, experiences of transformation, relationships of equality, strategies of peace, institutions of justice, and households of compassion for the sake of our children’s future.

Imagine a world where the question “what’s wrong with me” has been exorcised from the bodies and lives of our daughters. A world where they cultivate their amazing capacities as children of life. Where they travel a less turbulent path than we did toward self-love, self-acceptance, 

and self-trust.

Imagine yourself as this 

woman. And together let us imagine such a community and world into being for the sake of our daughters and sons, and our beloved planet. 

Imagine a Woman III 
©2014 Patricia Lynn Reilly
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Donna Henes is the author of The Queen of My Self: Stepping into Sovereignty in Midlife. She offers counseling and upbeat, practical and ceremonial guidance for individual women and groups who want to enjoy the fruits of an enriching, influential, purposeful, passionate, and powerful maturity. Consult the MIDLIFE MIDWIFE™

The Queen welcomes questions concerning all issues of interest to women in their mature years. Send your inquiries to thequeenofmyself@aol.com.