HomeHomeJanuary 2003
"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
Mary Oliver (American poet, from Rosalie Maggio’s compilation, Quotations From Women on Life. Prentice Hall, Paramus, NJ, 1997)
Happy New Year! The month of January always ushers in a brief collective period of reflection about the past year, and with it contemplation about new hopes, dreams and fears of what is to come in the next twelve months. It is also a period when we ponder our own individual sense of renewal. What will we accomplish this year? What stories will we tell each other about our world, our individual lives? What stories will we talk about a year from now?
In the U.S., we’re already talking about the proliferation of "reality" TV shows, which have nothing to do with the reality of most American lives. These programs usually pit human being against fellow human being in a game about deciding the ultimate victor in unusual situations. Sometimes contestants are stuck on a remote island or in a house together, or are competing against each other to face the individuals' own worst fears--i.e. scaling tall buildings, or being required to eat something repulsive like bugs, or even having said bugs crawl over the individual while she or he is "trapped" in some sort of glass "cage." The latest talk is about a show in which young women compete against each other for the affections of a man who is posing as a millionaire. The ultimate shock will be when the "winner" finds out that Prince Charming is really a low-paid blue-collar worker.
If this is the "entertainment" we readily and quickly consume today, will we next see a televised 21st century version of the brutal "games" once held in the old Roman Coliseum? How low will we go as we consume OTHER people’s stories? What have we learned? Are we truly inspired by these programs? Sadly, our entertainment is a reflection of who we are and what we value in our society.
And in America, we live in an highly competitive and impatient consumer culture. On large scales and small, we want quick results NOW. We don’t want to wait too long before we ultimately reach our goals and "win"--whether it’s starting a war with another country, or waiting for the stock market to recover or even beginning a new diet. The ultimate irony is that oftentimes, the things that are really worthwhile--from world peace to saving and investing for the future to losing extra pounds---take time, effort, dedication, and attention to detail to achieve.
This is a perilous, scary time in human history. We can’t change the entire world, but we can take charge of our own lives. We need courage and we need inspiration and we need to value each other. Let’s begin anew by revering life--starting with our own wonderful lives---by treasuring, respecting, living out our own stories and living them to the best of our abilities. We can inspire others by doing so. We can also seek our inspiration by taking the time to discover other people’s stories in the larger world. Our lives and the stories we tell will be so much richer a year from now.
Teresa
tcallies@hotmail.com
Where would you like to begin? Here are some suggestions for finding other stories, other perspectives, and pure joy, amazement, and inspiration...
Sarah Ban Breathnach, author of the Simple Abundance books, offers us something new with Romancing the Ordinary: A Year of Simple Splendor (Scribner, New York, NY, 2002). Her books are always a delight and will help renew your sense of gratitude for all the good things that life has to offer.
Katherine Martin is another fascinating writer who inspires us with her two excellent books, Women of Courage and Women of Spirit (New World Library, Novato, CA, 1999, and 2001, respectively). These are "must reads" for every woman’s bookshelf.
Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World (Random House, New York, NY, 2001) by Rita Golden Gelman will captivate you. This is one gutsy woman, who literally went out into the world at the age of 48, and found abundant richness and blessings in her connections with new friends from all walks of life. Her incredible stories will amaze you.
In the book (and movie) Rabbit Proof Fence (University of Queensland Press, Qld, Australia, 1996) Doris Pilkington/Nugi Garimara tells the true story of her mother, a young Aboriginal girl removed from her mother, and the long journey home. This is a perspective rarely heard and one worth paying attention to; we can learn much from the suffering and wisdom from indigenous women around the globe. A worthwhile classic about the Aboriginal experience is Sally Morgan’s My Place (Fremantle Arts Centre Press, Fremantle, WA, 1987.)
Aussie actor, writer, and singer Leah Purcell discusses modern life and the Aboriginal experience with nine other women in her new book, Black Chicks Talking (Hodder Headline, Sydney, Australia, 2002). It’s another fascinating read.
For other views of the Australian women’s experience, try What Women Want (Random House Australia, 2002) edited by Jackie Frank of Marie Claire magazine. You won’t be sorry.
News, Interesting Items and Other Tidbits....
In case you missed it, last September’s issue of More magazine featured photos of actress Jamie Lee Curtis posing without the ‘glam’ and with ‘glam.’ This is a VERY courageous move, considering that Hollywood movie executives seem to forget the fact that women over 40 exist and live more interesting lives than those of their 20-year-old counterparts. Bravo to Jamie Lee. However, she’s not the first one to show us a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a photo shoot.
In March of 2001, Lisa Kogan wrote about covering Oprah, for a photo shoot for her then-relatively new O magazine. Oprah, who continues to challenge American women to "live their best lives," has been very open about her struggles with weight and self-esteem. In October, 1998, she appeared on the cover of Vogue magazine, which trumpeted, "Oprah! A Major Movie, An Amazing Makeover" Oprah had to lose 20 lbs to get the cover shot.
Interestingly, Kathy Bruin of About-Face, whose mission is to promote "positive self-esteem in girls and women of all ages, sizes, races and backgrounds through a spirited approach to media education, outreach and activism" wrote about Oprah’s appearance in Vogue magazine.
Now, years later, Oprah has her own successful magazine, appears on the cover all the time, and compromises for no one. She has lost weight, yes, but on her own terms and for HER own benefit...not solely for the benefit of others. And that is truly an example of living your best life.
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