Isn’t it funny (not really) how we tend to adopt people’s view of us as a reflection of who we are? As if we aren’t enough. That can really worm it’s way into in our head. Well midlife woman, you are enough.
But still . . .
They scrutinize us up, down and sideways with a critical eye. We give our closets a major overhaul so that we can dress to impress.
They avert their eyes from us. We make strategic moves to remain in their line of sight.
They say we’re too old (but not to our faces). We do everything we can to look younger.
They giggle like little schoolgirls when we walk past them. We suck in our bellies, crunch up our ass cheeks and put a smile on our face.
They say we just don’t ‘get it.’ We try to speak their lingo.
They don’t hire us (even though we’re exceedingly qualified). We dummy down our resumes and shave years off our work history.
They talk to us with a lack of respect. We make excuses for their damn behavior.
They say we’re too reserved. We overshare on social media.
They say we can’t dance. We break a hip trying to prove them wrong.
They say our bodies are old, tired, and bloated. We pound away on the treadmill for hours on end at the gym.
They say we’re not relevant. We try to Tiktok, Instagram, and Snapchat our way into mattering.
They pity us. We allow it.
They ignore us. We wonder why.
This. All of this. This is what leads us to believe we’re not enough. Not good enough. Not smart enough. Not beautiful enough. Not relevant enough. And while we inevitably catch these feelings from others, sometimes we’re our own worst enemy because we tell ourselves the lie that we just aren’t enough.
Isn’t it about time we stop telling ourselves this and stop believing it from others?
Midlife woman, you are enough.
Come on, sis. Look at where you are in life. Look at what you’ve survived. Look at what you’ve accomplished. Take a good hard look at yourself and embrace the you that you are. You may not have written the next great novel, but you put pen to paper and wrote anyway. You may not be 5’11” and 110 pounds (but really, would you want to be?), but you’re healthy in mind, body, and spirit. You may not be Beyoncé, Anya Taylor-Joy, Sunisa “Suni” Lee, or Zendaya, but dammit, you’re you!
Midlife woman, you are enough.
You may not be any of those things that you thought you’d grow up to be, but . . . you’re not withering away in a jail cell, you’re not living under a bridge, you’re not being trampled by a herd of wildebeest on the Serengeti, you’re not trapped in a cave with no way out, and you’re not six feet under.
Let that sink in.
So I’ll say it again in case you missed it: Midlife woman, you are enough.
Don’t allow others to dictate your worth. You, my dear friend, are enough.
