The Power of Girlhood
Many have deemed the summer of 2023 the summer of Girlhood. With the Eras Tour, the Beyonce tour and the Barbie movie, it seemed like women across the country (and even world) were fully embracing pieces of themselves that for some (like me), had long been deemed "frivolous" or "silly".
Dressing up, caring about makeup and musicians may be something that is not critiqued or put down for some. However, for the longest time in my mind I had associated these things as trivial, or stupid to invest too much time in. Growing up with *mostly* all boys and having a brother who ripped the heads off of my barbies, deeply engrained a belief system that being "girly" was a negative thing. Being girly to me meant high maintenance, so I went the route of the "chill girl". One who ALWAYS liked blue over pink, who would get dressed up for certain events but who took pride in how short of time it took me to do so. One who LOVED the outdoors and to me this meant I couldn't also love what was deemed as "superficial" or girly.
But this summer made me take a long hard look at these beliefs. Why was I conditioned to believe that "girly" was bad? Why does wanting to look nice and put on perfume make it so I can't also LOVE days on the trail? Who deemed these things as superfluous? And why is it that women get made fun of for dressing up to see their favorite artist but yet men aren't critiqued for putting on another man's jersey to go watch a game?
It may all sound trivial, but for me it was a big wake up call that there were parts of me I had been suppressing since early childhood. Parts that felt confident when I tapped into that side, parts that enjoyed the FUN of dressing up and being silly and dancing with friends, parts that wanted to experience joy for the sake of joy instead of having to have a purpose for everything I did.
This summer was an incredible summer where I opened to seeing the magic in the everyday and embracing the duality that exists in all of us. I realized I can enjoy spending time on makeup and clothes AND love spending time in nature. I can be ambitious and intelligent WHILE ALSO loving the color pink and Taylor Swift. It is not a one or the other and any belief system that tells you that is a lie.
You get to embrace ALL of you. To feel confident in whatever ways bring out the light in you. To believe in magic, to tap into joy even if others deem it "silly". Because if it's not harming others and it is bringing you happiness, no one else should have a say. So wear the pink, sing the songs, and let yourself step into the full embodiment of the dynamic person you are.
If you want to hear more on this topic, I recently had on a special guest on my podcast to talk through what this summer of girlhood meant for us. Tune in here.