I’ve been blessed to have some powerful women in my life, who have modeled to me strength, love, service, humor, and authenticity. My 95 year old Nouna (Godmother, in Greek) has been a great example to me, throughout my life, of all of these qualities.
On National Women’s Day, March 8th , I want to recognize some of the lessons she taught me, that have proven invaluable in my journey as a woman, and hopefully lay the groundwork for what I can pass along to my own daughter, and provide a ripple effect of what I share with others.
Seven Life Lessons from a Wise Woman
1. Give what you have. If it’s food, give it. If it’s mowing a lawn for someone who needs it, do it. If it’s money, share it. If it’s love—Shower it, because we can never give enough love.
2. Open your home. Share your space. Welcome the people you love. “My home is your home, sweetheart—always.” Since I can remember, I knew that no matter what, I was always welcome in my Nouna and Nounos’ home.
3. Life is funny. Laugh. “You just have to laugh, honey! What else can you do?” It’s absurd, at times, the way life unfolds, and often, it’s completely out of our control. What we can control, however, is the way we engage with it, the way we respond to it. Does it constrict us or open us? Does it shut us down or move us forward? Does it close us or expand and stretch us? When recognizing the absurdity and laughing at life is the one perspective that can help you get through the bullshit, take it!
4. Love—it’s what we all need. “Honey, I love my family so much because that’s what I was given. I was loved unconditionally and so that’s what I knew how to do—just love people!” She loves so completely and unconditionally, no matter if she agreed with life choices or not. She has always given all that she’s had to give directly from her heart.
5. Talk back, even to your elders. “If you’re not being truthful, you’re not going to be happy.” At almost 96 years old, she says what’s on her mind. She always has! “That’s what makes me healthy!” She says. She has taught me how to take up space, ask questions, share my truth, even when it’s uncomfortable.
6. Always remember what got us here. Know your roots, remember the struggles, feel the resilience that you were taught—appreciate your family and what you’ve been through, and what they’ve been through. Connect with the grit of those before you and know the struggles of your ancestors. Know your foundation. Embody the strength that has been passed down to you.
7. Keep moving! At 92, my Nouna was walking a mile a day. She had a back surgery a couple of years ago and has slowed down a bit but does her best to keep her body moving. “I gotta keep moving honey and keep my body as healthy and active as I can,” she’d say. Now, she continues to bustle around her house, cook and clean, and welcome family and friends into her home, always.
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Judith Duerk writes in her book, “Circle of Stones: A woman’s journey to herself,” the following:
“How might your life have been different, if there had been a place for you… a place of women, where you were received and affirmed? A place where other women, perhaps somewhat older, had been affirmed before you, each in her time, affirmed, as she struggled to become more fully herself?”
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It is because of the women who came before us that we are able to share our voices, our strengths, the power and wisdom of the feminine, and I want to honor those women who continue to inspire growth and profound love in the face of divisiveness and challenge.
Who are the women who have helped to pave your path, or the paths of other women and girls in your life? What are their lessons you want to pass along and share with the world?
For the Love of Your Life,
Angie