Celebrating the divine feminine, the everyday feminine, and girls
December 2, 2024
Image by Freestocks from Unsplash.com
THINKING ABOUT:
I’ve been thinking about women for the last month. Women of every age, shape, ethnicity. Our fabulousness. Our toughness. Our brilliance. Every woman I know was out working to get the first female President elected. Writing tens of thousands of postcards. Knocking on thousands of doors, even getting on buses to other states in the final days. Making friendship bracelets. Running for office. I celebrate all of you, even as I felt that defeat in my bones. Once again, a ridiculously qualified woman defeated by apathy, misogyny, and—this time—racism. Yet still we go on, picking up the pieces, setting boundaries for ourselves and others, regrouping, and figuring out what the new assignment is.
I celebrate Cecile Richards being awarded the Medal of Freedom by President Biden for her incredible work leading Planned Parenthood. I saw her speak at the 2017 Women’s March and she was fierce and inspiring and aspirational. I celebrate Sarah McBride, the first trans woman elected to Congress who has been targeted in an unhinged manner by another Congressperson but refuses to be deterred or derailed by the madness. I celebrate Kamala Harris running a flawless 107-day campaign, inspiring so many of us with her vision of a joyful, inclusive, safer America.
And a surprised congratulations to Georgie for stepping into her confidence and winning The Great British Bakeoff! You did Wales proud.
Onward.
WATCHING:
I’ve been watching and loving so many female-centric movies and TV shows this month. My Old Ass is a delightful indie film starring Aubrey Plaza as the older version of Maisy Stella (the younger singing sister from Nashville). Plaza shows up during Stella’s end-of-summer-before-college mushroom trip and provides guidance, snarky insights, and a warning. I won’t ruin the ending, but I’ll say that the scene left me a puddle on the floor and I will think about it for a long, long time.
Far different tonally is The Idea of You starring Anne Hathaway as a recently divorced, early 40s mom who meets a 24-year-old star of a boy band in a silly way. Romance ensues. BUT, the point of this movie is a woman stepping into her sensuality, her sexuality, not putting herself second, and not sublimating herself for others. And I am here for it. (A similar but less impactful film is A Family Affair with Nicole Kidman and Zac Efron as the mismatched-in-age lovers. Both of their faces look so odd to me now it’s like watching AI versions of them. But if you’re looking for something light, it’s fine.)
READING:
I had the pleasure of meeting many writers last weekend at the Grieftastic Book Fair in Los Angeles, including Laura Cathcart Robbins. I scooped up her book Stash: My Life in Hiding as my take-home read, and could. not. put. it. down. Holy cow. Not only is her story important, it’s searingly honest and astonishingly written. It was especially lovely to read because I met her current partner at the event and he was just the sweetest, sitting in the front row of her panel, taking photos and videos of her. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
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