Sisterhood ...

The battle of the sexes rages on and today is my birthday. I realize that I have reached yet another milestone, but why now do I still have doubts? Why do I still second-guess myself? Why still?

If it were not for my sisters, I don't think I would have survived. We have been there for each other in ways that marvel the senses. I look back at my life and realize that at some of the hardest forks in the road, there were the women. First, my grandmother and mother. Miss Elaine brought me into this world through my mother's thighs, soothing both her babies at the same time. I don't remember the "Push, Savantha" in reality, but in heart, I see my grandmother urging my mother to give me life. I know that my grandmother caught me in loving arms, wiped and cleaned me and heard my first cry. I know that she and my mother counted every toe and finger and that I was loved from the moment I entered this world.

Countless time I remember the women. I can name them all. I can see them all. From aunts and older cousins to my baby cousin Mary Adell, these were my beginnings. Later, there were the teachers and family friends, Miss Bessie and Mrs. Sharp in New Mexico where schooling began. Individuals who taught me beauty and language. I owe them both.

On and on, even now, the sisterhood has sustained me. While there have been times when we haven't been nice to one another, but for the most part, if it were not for the women in my life, I could not have survived cancer, my granddaughter's death, my mother's death, or the current trials of life and love.

It is not to say that men are not important. They are. They are part of this earth's core, masculine and strong, but theirs is not the only strength. We are strong, sisters, and this is our opportunity to get stronger because we birth the world and our children depend on us. It is therefore imperative that we depend on each other.

More to come, but share your thoughts. Let me know what sisterhood means to you.

Namaste'
P.K.