Sister to Sister

Welcome,

It has often been said, 'It takes a village to raise a child.' Actually, it took a village of women to raise the children and maintain the village. During the day, men were out hunting or warring. At the end of day, men arrived home expecting to be fed and taken care of.

Today women worldwide are in many ways isolated and without a village. And yet, we need that village now more than ever. We need the support, encouragement and knowledge of other women to help raise children and deal with issues that affect life at home and life at work.

Other women are not our competition. Other women are our sisters, our village. We are not girls. We are not men-want-a-be's. We are women.

Women are smart and capable and strong, traits that have helped us survive in the past in an unfriendly, even hostile, environment. It is time for us to use what we have inherited from our mothers and grandmothers to make a better place for our children and ourselves.

I would like to be able to provide a readymade village of sisters for each and every one of you. Alas, I cannot. That you must do for yourself. Your village need not be large, start with one sister and others will find you. The more diverse the members, the more diverse the resources they will bring to the village. If everyone agrees with everyone else, growth and discovery will be difficult.

When you gather your village of women, be sure to ask older women to join your group. Encourage them to share their life experiences.  You will be surprised, impressed and appalled at what they will tell you. These quiet, polite ladies have strength and courage and intelligence that they do not show to the world. Although many have had blessed lives, others have been through wars and abuse and deprivation.  They have learned to improvise and suck it up and endure. Your life today is, in many ways, a walk in the park compared to what some of those who went before you have experienced.  Encourage these ladies to share their good and bad experiences with you.  Yes, much of their knowledge is still useful in our world of televisions, cell phones and the internet.  After all, people have not really changed much in the last hundred thousand years despite the changes in their environment.

And do not forget to include the younger sisters who can benefit by the wisdom and guidance of more experienced women.

Welcome sisters

Rainey Stowers