I've been thinking a lot about women. As someone who was never afraid to call myself a feminist, even as we continue to experience a backlash (and it has gone on and on, in a myriad of subtle and not-so-subtle ways) in this country, and who has devoted most of my visual art and theater practice to issues of gender, it's always on my mind in some way, shape, or form. Right now I'm thinking about what women carry...we do have the weight of the world on our shoulders. The emotional space we occupy, the deep love we feel that makes us that much more vulnerable to guilt, pain, and sorrow. The circumstances we find ourselves in that pit us against each other, even when that is not our wish. It's a question of systems and values, and it's global. No one is immune.
But I also am reminded constantly how strong we are and can be--how we step up for each other, without expecting anything in return, the inner resources we think we don't possess but that we find just when we least expect them to kick in. It's a gift.
In discussions about gender, I've always said that never in my life have I ever wanted to be a man. That is true. It's no reflection on manhood or men; it's more that I have cherished the fact that I am a woman, it's everything that I am and can be.
No comments:
Post a Comment