THE "BEING GOBBY" ONE - Issue #18
Even though we're over 45, we still have a voice. A loud one and we shouldn't stop using it.
Hi There, gorgeous readers!
How are y’all? I hope you’re all managing to keep safe & well and navigating through these dark Autumn months.
It’s a joy to welcome subscribers back issue after issue, and if this is your first issue here, then a double-welcome to you, and I hope you enjoy being here. Thank you for trusting me enough to sign up in the first place :)
The theme for this newsletter was solely prompted by a book I picked up in a charity shop for £1.00! I was attracted to it by it’s diminutive size and the colour of the book jacket - sunshine yellow with black lettering (totally Hacienda - forgive me!).
But I didn’t realise what I was picking up. I think fate/serendipity/chance - call it what you will - was playing a big part in drawing me to the book.
The book is about either seeing or experiencing injustice and marshalling yourself to fight the aggressor and calling this injustice out. It’s written by MP Jess Phillips and in it she issues a rallying cry for anyone who has experienced unfair acts to set about taking the aggressor to task and righting that wrong.
The injustice doesn’t have to be major - it can be as little as experiencing an unfair policy in your place of work that needs to change or as major as the #MeToo campaign. The point is, that you aren’t just standing by witnessing the injustice, you are very bravely doing something about it.
There may be some reading this, thinking that as mid-life women we shouldn’t rock the boat too much and leave any flag waving to the younger generations. True, you have to admire the millennials and Gen Z’s confidence in how they call out even the tiniest injustice and don’t stop until they get a resolution. They’re good at it, (Extinction Rebellion, anyone?) and it never crosses their mind that perhaps they shouldn’t be rattling cages - that’s the difference between their upbringing and ours. They are so empowered, and it’s a delight to witness.
So, if you feel in your gut an issue that needs to be raised and talked about - no matter it’s size- and you have an inkling to start a campaign, then get yourself a copy of this book to have by your side as you fight the wrong-doers.
I know by reading it, it’s strengthen my resolve to push 45NotOut as far as I can, and inspired me to plan a series of initiatives for next year. I’ll reveal more in later newsletters, but no doubt I’ll need some of you fabulous women to join in and help. More of this when I have a “cunning plan” (to quote the fab Sir Tony Robinson as Baldrick)
THE DOLLOP OF POSITIVITY:
I always think this time of year is the hardest. The days get darker and shorter and our energy levels reduce in keeping with our paleo-designed bodies and how they operate. Everything else in nature retreats and re-sets as the days get colder and shorter, yet this has to be the busiest time of year for humans - we throw everything we have into making Christmas great for everybody.
But, all that preparation and work takes up so much energy that it leaves us depleted and susceptible to illness. And whilst that bitch Covid-19 is still circulating, we are leaving ourselves open to enforced illness etc.
So, may I ask you to try and find some time for yourself to off-set all the pressure that will surely make itself known over the coming weeks. If only for an hour or so, take any opportunity you have to rest and re-set to ensure you’re in the best health you can be by the time the Christmas festivities roll around.
We’re worth it, right?
I’ll put my megaphone down for now and hope that you enjoyed Issue #18. If you know of someone who might enjoy the fortnightly musings on being a sassy mid-life woman, then please share it with them here. There’s power in numbers and the more fab women we have on board, the louder we can shout :)
So that’s it from me for another issue. Thanks for staying the course, and I hope what you read resonated with you.
Stay safe, well & strong
Till a fortnight’s time
Una x