Super Woman Deluxe

Here we are. The strong ones. This is us. The proud new generation of mature women. The Baby Boomer Deluxe model.

We are strong. We are fearless. We are complicated. We are interesting. We are determined to age gracefully. We love our families. We love our children. We love our men. And we love our women. We love sex. We love romance. We love shopping. We love cooking. We love success. We love power. We love our independence. We love our friends. We love to nurture. We love to dance. We love just about everything that touches our lives or is put in our care. We are fearless in our endeavor to protect our lives and everyone in it. And when faced with challenges, we draw from our endless pool of strength to get us through.

That’s who we are. It’s what we do. We deal with whatever is placed in our courageous lap and we make it work. We make it right. The evolution of “us” continues to amaze me, when I look at how far we’ve come. Joan of Arc, Sacajawea, Harriet, Florence, Susan, Mother Teresa, Elizabeth, Marie, Marilyn, Anne. These historic names proudly blazed the way for us. Heroes of the past imprinted into our map for the future. Guiding us. Motivating us. Inspiring us. Who knew that we, as women, would become the source of strength that solidifies our world. We are the rock stars of our generation and the Super Star role models for the next.

We have molded ourselves into women we never knew that we could be. We’ve done things we never knew we could. We are milliners extraordinaire as our heads adorn revolving hats depending on the roles we play. We’ve raised children. Run corporations. Run marathons. Run parties. We are the Chief Operating Officers of our families and for many it is our turn to carry the matriarch torch until we can no longer run the course. We have an eternal spring deep inside that continues to supply the fuel we need.

Until it doesn’t. And then it hits us and we sometimes feel as if that well has been depleted and our courage is low. We’ve run out of gas. The strain of life’s dilemmas feel overwhelming and our emotions take over, bullying our fortitude right out of the park. A home run for life’s problems! Congratulations! You’ve won.

We look in the mirror and no longer see the strong women we are. We see our skin depleted of youth and our soul depleted of the fire of passion. We see our age. Our lines. Our worry. Our fears. Our energy is low. Our self-doubt is high. Tears of frustration hover near the brim of defeat. Depressing thoughts trail down our cheeks.

How can we overcome this? How can we find our way back to our Super Woman status? What can we do to fill up our tank?

Know the symptoms. We’ve lived through several decades with ourselves, so we know us better than anyone. We need to learn to recognize when our reserves are getting low. When we need to find fuel. When we feel the threat of defeat trying to take over we need to find our happy place. Take a leave of absence from our daily routine and go to that place that gives us peace, refreshment, and recovery. Restore our soul.

Exercise. As difficult as it is, get out of bed and move our feet. Put our ear buds in, listen to our favorite tunes, and walk out our worries. Suddenly, our energy will reappear. We will feel good again. We will notice the beautiful world around us and the drearies will be the footprints we leave in the dust.

Pray or Meditate – find our calm. There is something to be said about giving our worries up to a higher power. Putting faith into the power of inevitability. What is going to happen will happen. That is the certainty. Give up the worry – so much is out of our control. The practice of Yoga has helped me find a calm that compliments my spirituality. I speak to this in “The Awakening”. I am more in-tuned to myself, my purpose, my physicality, and my life’s intentions. Work Yoga practice into our daily routine. Our body and your mind will thank us.

Create. Our ability to play again through creativity brings back the childlike energy and enthusiasm that makes us feel youthful again. Remember when we were young and our imagination led us to explore, seek adventure, and imagine endless possibilities? That is what creativity does! It opens new doors to endless possibilities through using our imagination and our hands, stimulating and channeling that right brain to break free of the restraints of boredom. We don’t have to be an accomplished artist or musician, but we can create color in our garden or paint a room or play with interior design. Anything to let our child spirit explore again!

Treat yourself right. This is really pretty simple. Basic recipe for healthy living.
Eat the right foods and in moderation. Drink plenty of water and limit your alcohol. And get plenty of sleep. Feeling good is about taking care of ourselves. Period.

Talk about it. We have family and friends who care about us. If we are not ourselves, chances are our family and friends have noticed. They are used to our smiling face and our presence in their lives. We can talk about our feelings or our frustrations. Every single one of us have had the same worries, the same challenges and the same struggles to work through. Our ability to share these with each other helps us get back to “normal” and restores strength to our soul.

Being a Super Woman can be challenging but the legacy that it leaves will last well beyond the lives that we live. The impact that we have on our children and our children’s children and all future generations of daughters is deeply felt. When I think of strong women in my own lifetime including Jackie, Diana, Oprah, Ellen, Hillary, and Norma, I know that many of these are my role models and the lessons I’ve learned from them will be passed along to my own children and on to theirs. In case you wondered who Norma is – she’s my mother. The strongest woman I know. My personal role model. Even at 92, she shows courage and strength in spite of age’s merciless betrayal. Her faithful and ever present strength helps her smile and laugh through even the hardest of days. She will forever be the eternal spring upon which I draw my strength. My own personal well of fortitude. I am so proud to pass that on to my children.

Life is hard. Find your Super Woman strength inside you – the one that has the sturdiness and courage to carry the torch. Keep it and hold it high so that the light can be the guide for future generations to follow.

First published on Sixty and Me, June 24, 2017
Sixty & Me – Wonder Women