This is me!

By Shirley Serviss

“This is me,” one of the women in Eric Bibb’s songwriting workshop sang at Wednesday night’s concert.

Sande and I have been talking about the freedom of being ourselves at this stage of our lives — not having to be whom or what anyone else expects us to be. We have been discussing how older women in our society are treated as though we are invisible, how our changing bodies no longer fit the feminine image of beauty presented by the media if, in fact, they ever did. How we disparage ourselves: our round bellies and flabby underarms, instead of rejoicing in the strength and wisdom we have gained from our experiences and the confidence it has given us, the bodies that have supported us, perhaps borne children. Enjoying our sexuality now that pregnancy is no longer an issue. Having fun creating our own “look” unbounded by the fashion dictates and need to fit in.

We want to capture this somehow, in a joint project as it is something that interests us both, but haven’t quite figured out how to do that. Perhaps we could tie it into Energy — The Haven’s word for 2012. Although I, for one, am still waiting for the promised “post-menopausal zest.”