Imagine a woman who believes it is right and good she is a woman.
A woman who honors her experience and tells her stories.
Who refuses to carry the sins of others within her body and life.
Imagine a woman who trusts and respects herself.
A woman who listens to her needs and desires.
Who meets them with tenderness and grace.
Imagine a woman who authors her own life.
A woman who exerts, initiates, and moves on her own behalf.
Who refuses to surrender except to her truest self and wisest voice.
Imagine a woman who names her own gods.
A woman who imagines the divine in her image and likeness.
Who designs her own spirituality and allows it to inform her daily life.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
Who celebrates her body's rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.
Imagine a woman who honors the body of the Goddess in her changing body.
A woman who celebrates the accumulation of her years and her wisdom.
Who refuses to use her precious life energy disguising the changes in her.
Imagine a woman who values the women in her life.
A woman who sits in circles of women.
Who is reminded of the truth about herself when she forgets.
IMAGINE YOURSELF AS THIS WOMAN.
Eight stanzas of this poem are found in: "A God Who Looks Like Me: Discovering A Woman-Affirming Spirituality" (Ballantine, 1995).Twenty-four stanzas of this poem are found in: "Be Full of Yourself!: The Journey from Self-Criticism to Self-Celebration" (OWC, 1998).Patricia's forthcoming book: "Imagine a Woman in Love With Herself" (Conari Press, 1999) is based on the poem.The original eight-stanza poem is available in postcard form from: Open Window Creations: PO Box 8615, Berkeley, CA 94707 or 510-530-4859
Notice: The author asked me to put the complete version of her poem on my website because there are altered versions floating around the internet.