I sit in the theater as the lights dim, the scent of popcorn (and of chocolate popcorn!) wafting through the air.
It’s silent, except for an occasional rustle and crunch.
My friend Ann sits beside me.
(Side note: Ann is a statuesque Irish-American woman, with flowing Botticelli-esque hair. She might as well be Wonder Woman – or at least one of her Amazon sisters. 😉
The screen lights up and soon, I’m a voyeur as a young Diana watches her aunts and older sisters spar. Hiding behind a statue above the practice field, the angel-faced little girl strikes a fierce pose. She mimics the punches and kicks of her Amazon Warrior sisters.
And that’s when it begins.
The knot in my throat and the tightness in my chest and the tears poised to fall at the corners of my eyes… and the slight upward curve of my lips.
“I know you, little girl. I was you.”
What woman can’t remember a time when she longed to do and be more – but heard “you’re too young, too weak, too precious, too sensitive, too something”?
Not enough.
When a grown-up Diana/Wonder Woman finally charges onto a real battlefield, it’s all I can do not to weep.
Smiling.
Because I know her, too.
I am her.
And so are you.
If you only allow it to be so.
I realize this sounds melodramatic – it’s a movie, for god’s sake! A superhero movie, at that.
No one is more surprised than I at my emotional reaction to this summer blockbuster.
But recognizing yourself – and feeling REPRESENTED – on a gigantic movie screen is powerful medicine in a culture that still discounts the power of women.
Because – like Wonder Woman – women value love and collaboration as much as we value ambition and success.
Like Diana, we’re (often) not aware of our own strength.
Like Wonder Woman, we let fear and confusion get in the way of seeing our truth…
… and taking inspired action to move towards it.
Because now, as adult women, we’re the ones saying “you’re not enough.” To ourselves.
So my challenge to you today, sister…
Step onto the battlefield. (Or into the arena, as Brené Brown would say.)
You have strength beyond your imagination – simply because you’re a woman.
Whatever your struggle – eating better, exercising more, getting more sleep, losing weight, reclaiming your confidence, finding work/life balance – it all changes as soon as you heed the call of your most vibrant and powerful self…
… and step up to reconnect with her.
You may have lost touch with her underneath the stress and demands of your day-to-day life, but SHE’S IN THERE.
Like Wonder Woman was inside Diana.
And hey, (SPOILER ALERT!), she stopped a freakin’ WAR.
Imagine what YOU can do.
P.S. Go see Wonder Woman, even if you’re not the comic book type. She’s so much more than a comic book heroine.
And she couldn’t be stepping onto the world stage again at a better time. The world NEEDS the feminine power cocktail of love and strength right now. Of faith in humanity AND firm boundaries saying “enough is enough.”
And you, dear reader, will create a ripple effect in the world – simply by showing up as your most vibrant, healthy, confident and POWERFUL self. In your little corner of the Universe.
Now. Not later in the year, or when things “calm down” at work. They won’t. (I know you know this.) So let’s find a way for you to step into your big dreams for your career and life NOW.
Click here to schedule a no-commitment discovery call with me – so we can sort out the best next steps for you. Together. (No strings attached.)
Because even Wonder Woman needs a partner (or four) to save the world. 🙂
With love,
