WANT TO KNOW A SECRET?

I had to share this!

“Text me when you get home. Usually, it’s late when women say this to each other, the end of a night that at some point felt thrilling. We might have been at dinner, a concert or a cocktail bar. We might have been just hanging out talking even though we knew we’d be tired the next day.

Men do not tell their friends to text them when they get home. Some guy somewhere must have been worried about his buddy finding his way back okay at the end of a night, but he probably just said, “Get home safe,” or didn’t say anything at all.

This is because women who say, “Text me when you get home,” aren’t just asking for reassurance that you’ve made it to your bed unharmed. It’s not only about safety. It’s about solidarity. It’s about us knowing how unsettling it can feel when you’ve been surrounded by friends and then are suddenly by yourself again. It’s about us understanding that women who are alone getting unwanted attention and scrutiny

The words are a web connecting us, winding through the many moments we spend together and apart, helping us understand that whenever we’re unmoored or terrified or irate or heartbroken or just bored, we’re not by ourselves. They are a way for women to tell each other, “I’m always with you. I won’t forget about you when you walk away. I am here when I’m standing in front of you or any other time you need me, no matter what.”

When I decided I wasn’t ready to marry my long-term boyfriend in my early thirties, I looked around, and instead of being unsure, I was inspired. Surrounding me were a bunch of women who were doing exactly what I wanted to do: striving to do good work, setting themselves apart and aligning themselves with other amazing people. I wanted to spend whatever time I could with them. This crew became essential to my identity and psyche. Someone once described female friendship to me as a soft place to land, and it was.

Now, I look to my friends for the kind of support that comes from wanting only to be good to each other. My people push me to do better. They listen, but not in a quiet, passive way. They’re always on point for correcting me when I put myself down or fall into the trap of thinking things are my fault when they aren’t. My friends are brilliant, funny, fearless, wise and generous. We champion each other in emails, in texts, in congratulatory flowers or simply by saying how much we trust each other. It feels like I’m part of a team, even if some of the women on it don’t know each other.”[1]

[1] http://www.oprah.com/inspiration/kayleen-schaefer-the-other-love-story-in-our-lives

    Until next time, remember,

• You are not alone.

• You are not your circumstances.

• You have everything within you to live a purpose-filled life.