Last weekend when Liesbeth Lap shared this Shinedown music lyric quote and a beautiful dancing lady illustration (see below) on Twitter, the image and quote moved me.
On one level, I like the sentiment about women being strong and independent. We live in an age when women have more freedoms than my mother or grandmother had—though they were both women of uncompromising spirits.
And yet, we live in times that also challenge us/women at every turn—
with the beautiful people issues of magazines, when beauty is a cultural and generational (a 1520 beauty at right, Venus by Titian who would be considered “plus sized” in modern times) construct that is ever changing, or reminders to women of the “gender pay gap” compared to men’s salaries, etc. It sometimes seems like one step forward, two steps back.
And then we have wonderful inspiring examples of women empowering themselves and each other—even to the moon and back, in the 2016 film “Hidden Figures” (see Wiki excerpt below):
“Hidden Figures is a 2016 American biographical drama film directed by Theodore Melfi and written by Melfi and Allison Schroeder, based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly about African American female mathematicians who worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the Space Race. The film stars Taraji P. Henson as Katherine Johnson, a mathematician who calculated flight trajectories for Project Mercury and other missions. The film also features Octavia Spencer as Dorothy Vaughan and Janelle Monáe as Mary Jackson, with Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, Glen Powell and Mahershala Ali in supporting roles.”
Hidden Figures | Teaser Trailer [HD] | 20th Century FOX
These ladies of NASA weren’t delicate. They were being vast and brilliant! And their examples shine in my heart–and make me want to dance like the lady in the illustration above. Will you join me?
I watched the movie Hidden Figures last week and thoroughly enjoyed it. I told my mom she needed to watch it.
Today at work my new manager was telling me about a former co-worker of hers that would sing “Delta Dawn” and only the Helen Reddy version would do. It brought me back to my childhood where my mom would play the Helen Reddy album over and over at night while I was supposed to be sleeping. Talking about this song brought me to Helen Reddy’s “I Am Woman” song. For the time it was a very groundbreaking/empowering song that I didn’t fully grasp because of my young age. And tonight your blog posting has made the day come full circle. I still remember the words from The Help… You is kind, You is smart, You is important.
My teenage son often asks me why I am so smart. It’s wisdom born of pain…
“I Am Woman”
I am woman, hear me roar
In numbers too big to ignore
And I know too much to go back and pretend
‘Cause I’ve heard it all before
And I’ve been down there on the floor
No one’s ever going to keep me down again
Whoa, yes, I am wise
But it’s wisdom born of pain
Yes, I’ve paid the price
But look how much I gained
If I have to I can do anything
I am strong (strong)
I am invincible (invincible)
I am woman
You can bend but never break me
‘Cause it only serves to make me
More determined to achieve my final goal
And I’ll come back even stronger
Not a novice any longer
‘Cause you’ve deepened the conviction in my soul
Whoa, yes, I am wise
But it’s wisdom born of pain
Yes, I’ve paid the price
But look how much I gained
If I have to I can do anything
I am strong (strong)
I am invincible (invincible)
I am woman
I am woman, watch me grow
See me standing toe-to-toe
As I spread my loving arms across the land
But I’m still an embryo
With a long, long way to go
Until I make my brother understand
Whoa, yes, I am wise
But it’s wisdom born of pain
Yes, I’ve paid the price
But look how much I gained
If I have to I can face anything
I am strong (strong)
I am invincible (invincible)
I am woman
Oh, I am woman
I am invincible
I am strong
I am woman
I am invincible
I am strong
I am woman
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi valsgal1999, Thanks for sharing your lovely comment with memories and the Helen Reddy song, I am Woman. It was indeed a groundbreaking song and inspiration. I think I first heard her sing in on the Dinah Shore show–a ringing endorsement at the time.
Cheers! Grati ;->
LikeLike
April 22 & 27, 2017–Thanks for liking/starring my post #1058! I’m glad that you enjoyed it! Cheers! Grati ;->
Guylty, discovermarche, & Esther
LikeLike