Menopause is great. Fierce. Powerful. Wild and tumultuous. It's a whole new version of yourself, emerging from the inside out, like a butterfly breaking out of her cocoon, like a Shaman returning from the other side. It's exactly the kind of intensity the world needs right now...because Revolution has to come from within. Grandmothers have to reclaim the world...not for power, or the prestige of a puffed-up office, but for Love. For our grandchildren. Menopause is the last chance to re-create ourselves in our own image, to actually listen to that inner voice who's nagged us our whole life, telling us we're meant for something better. Because we are. And knowing this...living this...can Change the world.Oh, but wait. There is something terrifyingly wrong about old women, isn't there? Especially if they have the nerve to wear purple or are outrageous enough to take lovers or listen to their hearts, of all foolish things. Old women are supposed to be helpless, with crumbling bones and no sex drive. They should never attempt anything daring like crossing the street...at least not without the help of a Boy Scout. If all menopausal women snorted and rolled their eyes and said “Hrmpf!” to this hideous enforced helplessness and embraced the fabulous ups and downs of Change, we could do anything. We could turn this world around.
When the ancient aspects of Maiden, Mother & Crone unfold naturally in a woman's life, she grows progressively stronger and more fabulous. But misogyny demands women grow progressively weaker, and the vast majority comply. We are social animals, after all, and need, all the way down to our DNA, to fit into a social structure. Even if it hates us. That, Dear Reader, is the real reason for all the so-called “female troubles” women suffer. Misogyny. Internalized misogyny. We are conditioned to conform, and we do...with our bodies.
This world is sick. Multi-billion dollar industries thrive on female stuff being disgusting, defective and dangerous. The sheer number of products, drugs and procedures that exist to put women down is mind-boggling. At their doctor's say-so, millions of women obediently gulp down the recommended doses of pregnant mare urine. Yes, that's what Premarin, your so-called HRT, is made from. The number of amputated female body parts is the stuff of the Inquisitors' wildest wet-dreams. How often do you hear about a man “needing” his testicles cut off? Practically never. Testicles are not any healthier than ovaries. It's the attitude towards ovaries, breasts and uteri that's sick. It's all about male supremacy. Medicalizing the mutilations of women's bodies is the modern way of burning us at the stake. And everybody believes the lie that it's for our own good!
According to Susun Weed, by the year 2013, fifty million women will have achieved menopause. 2013 is the time Native American teachers say massive upheavals in Earth will culminate, too. Coincidence? No. The personal is the planetary and the planetary is the personal. Imagine the potential for positive Change with fifty million women in their full power...refusing to go quietly. Will we? Or will we remain helpless and compliant? It's up to us. I say we tap into the incredible forces moving through our bodies, become outrageous grandmothers, and do our part to stop the insanity. Loser politicians are always blathering about change, yet never affect any. Forget about them. Menopause actually is Change. Real Change. It's the kind of Change the world desperately needs. It's the Revolution from within.
Anne has finished her first novel and is busy peddling it to agents and publishers. She can be found wandering the streets of Crestone, CO and hanging out in Internet cafes. Contact her at annepyterek@gmail.com
