List the things that make you feel powerful:
- A blazer. For dress or casual wear, as a light jacket in spring or fall, or just to dignify a less than stellar outfit, any blazer will do. Whether it’s my ratty, old blazer with thistles and brambles solidly enmeshed in the fabric, my newer, all-around gray blazer, or one of the dressier ones that used to be parts of men’s suits, a blazer is my power choice.
- Helen Reddy singing “I am Woman.” Always stirring, even after all these years.
- Making bread. It takes physical effort, and the results are magically better than the ingredients that went into it.
- Having my hands in clay, working with paint or ink or charcoal. When I feel humiliated, embarrassed or beat down by the world, art-making brings me back to my center.
- Writing, sometimes.
- Walking in nature, when neither ice nor mosquitoes are out there to intimidate me.
- I had a father with strong opinions, a big laugh and an impressive work ethic. Though I think much of my strength comes from my mother, any feelings of power come from my father’s influence.
