Day 8: You’re a fierce warrior and a compassionate sister/mother/friend.

When I lived in Boise I received Baxter my coonhound as a Christmas present. We didn’t intend to have another dog but when I first saw his wrinkled skin rolled over and over each other as he slept so innocently on the lap of the breeder I knew that he and I were destined to be in each other’s lives. One of the first memories I have of Baxter was when he had followed Jeremy down the stairs. His legs were too short for the length of the stairs so he began to slide down the stairs so quickly that he slid under the foot of Jeremy and they both tumbled down the stairs. Jeremy told me to go to Baxter as he was yelping like he was severely hurt. I grabbed Baxter into my arms and immediately all was right in the world. He just needed his mama.

As woman we have been cultivated to be loving and caring. To be protectors of the ones we love. We are the nurturers and caretakers that build up the community in our homes and out of our homes. We are mama bears who are fiercely protective of those we love, causes that we are passionate about and believe, and for those who cannot protect themselves. I know when the mama bear in me comes out, everyone else sits up and takes notice.

As a strong woman, or just as a woman, we are fierce fighters of the unjust. We want to make the world a better place because we feel that everyone deserves that. At least I know I do. I know what makes me stronger as a woman, as a human being, is the fact that I fight for the greater good. I fight so that the ones who can’t fight for themselves get heard. At work I am known as the mother figure. At first it bothered me but then I realized it wasn’t a bad thing. The employees saw me as someone that they could trust, someone they could talk to and know what they were saying was either in confidence or action would be taken. As a strong woman I love deep and truly care for the lives I touch. And that isn’t a bad thing.

Be the strong woman for a life that needs someone who can support and comfort them. Someone who may not know what is up or down. Someone who only sees darkness and is defeated. Be the strong woman for someone who needs someone to stand with them.