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| by Joanna Powell Colbert, available at gaiansoul.com |
When I was six, I believed that when I was old and gray, I'd be allowed to speak up and no one would slap me down. That's not the case, but even so, I love being old!
So I was disappointed when my friend Aaron recently called me middle-aged. Is that what I am? I did the math and yes, if I assume that I'll live as long as my mother, then I am only middle-aged and won't be old until March 2021.
But there's another set of labels available.
Years ago, when I heard that phases of the moon, the faces of female divinity, and the stages of a woman's life were divided into three: maiden, mother, and crone, it seemed to me that there should be a fourth phase/aspect. Why doesn't the dark moon count? We know it's there even if we can't see it.
Later I read that M. Esther Harding had also thought that the goddess and a woman's life has four phases. More recently, Donna Henes wrote a book in which she declared that the stages of a woman's life should be divided in four: maiden, mother, queen, and crone. (The names could use revising.)
According to that system, I am in the "queen" phase of my life-- the first quarter of it. I'll be in the middle of my queen phase in 793 days. What will I accomplish between now and 12 October 2017? Can I become empowered?
And will I be a wise crone on 23 November 2048?
Why do I love being "old?" Because I no longer berate myself for being too stupid to figure the world out. The world cannot be figured out-- anything that complicated can't be real. So, all I am responsible for is being myself, following my heart, choosing whether to stay safe or to do what’s right, and appreciating my friends.
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Even for those who've had their voices stolen,
the true act of love is not to speak on their behalf,
but to help them steal their voices back.
- Rhyd Wildermuth
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