The Pillar of POWER
In a culture that values women’s youthful beauty and fertility, many midlife women complain about their invisibility. We do have a choice: we can see ourselves as becoming invisible and less, or we can let go of our fear of change, of that limiting inner voice, to embrace the power of our wise woman, the power of ourselves as elders. In this chapter, midlife is revealed as a time during which, when we have collected all the skills that ordinary people can collect through experiencing exceptional circumstances, the engine—the power of a great midlife advantage—is created. It’s time to recognize our power, as both ordinary and extraordinary women, and as a huge demographic group poised to make a significant difference in this world.
Powerful Women
Crystal Buchan
Lorraine Howe
Roz Ehmann
Susan B Anthony
Rosa Parks
Oprah Winfrey
Meryl Streep
Vi Morrow
PLAYTIME
This is it! Midlife Matinee
Here’s a chance to write your own midlife matinee, with you as the leading lady. The script is your very own, as only you can imagine, bigger than life and filled with every opportunity to do whatever you dream. Since you are both the scriptwriter and the star, this matinee is a chance for you to really shine.
Start by writing your leading lady. Who is she? What does she like to do? Imagine and then describe where in the world she is or the adventure she is on. For inspiration, have your heroine complete statements such as “I’m at the perfect age to…” or “This is the perfect time to…” Once your leading lady takes shape, draw in the scenery—the clouds, the valley, the mountain or desert—the bicycle she rides, the plane she flies. Does she solve a mystery? Find a missing child? Share a meal or kiss a stranger? Does she possess superpowers?
Draft the script and then draw in the details, in each storyboard. See the final scene, then watch the curtains rise and descend again, to the uproarious sounds of clapping, and you at center stage. Then send out your dream for the Universe to deliver.
For fun, here is our leading lady, Jane Bond, in a new life script.
Storyboard 1.
Our script stars Jane Bond. We see her wearing a pencil-thin skirt and displaying a sharp wit. She is behind the wheel of a red Maserati that hugs the curves along the windy escarpment of the Northern Alps, leading to the scenic city of Monte Carlo. The sky is a robin’s-egg blue, and the trees are showing the first signs of yellow and white spring blooms. Her mission, detailed on the playing CD, will self-destruct in ten seconds.
Storyboard 2.
In her suite at the historic Hôtel Hermitage, in the leafy streets of the city’s captivating downtown, she gathers her midlife tools and catches her reflection in the large oval mirror: her beautifully aged skin, her grey and golden hair loose and flowing, her midlife lucky charm hanging low on a pearl drop chain. She tucks in her cream- colored shirt with a deep V neckline and smiles.
The bedside phone rings. “It’s time, Ms. Bond, the Salle Belle Époche is ready for you. The guests have been seated.” “Thank you,” Jane says. “It’s time.”
Storyboard 3
Jane takes the elevator down to the lobby and stops to admire the cascading pink orchids spilling from an elegant Renaissance-style receiving table. Jane’s heels click on the polished marble floor, her steps firm as she crosses the room. Passing through the lobby, she notices the reflection of the chandelier in the gloss of the stone, like a star in the Big Dipper that she used to wish on as a young girl.
Jane pauses briefly before the French doors leading to the conference room. Behind them, she hears the expectant buzz of the women gathered inside waiting to hear her midlife wisdom and to share theirs with her. Jane knows these doors—she envisioned them before the book was ever written—and at this moment she feels powerful.
Storyboard 4
She opens both doors and steps through into the stage light, hearing the applause grow as she takes center stage. She smiles and addresses the thousand women seated before her: “Thank you for coming to Monte Carlo to play with me.”
what does your Midlife Matinee look like?
Write Your Story 