In today's joy work,
We are going to reflect upon the generations that have come before us.
As we honor their legacies,
We also create space for our own work in our own time.
One of the things feminism hasn't addressed very well is age.
It seems to be in the natural progression of movements that each generation will swing away from the last in an attempt to triumph or improve upon their circumstances.
Let's look at the last few decades here in the United States.
The consciousness raising housewives of the 60s,
Such as from the novel A Woman's Room,
Gave rise to the liberal feminist equalizers of the 70s,
Bringing about women in sports,
Women in the military,
The hope and dashed hope of the Equal Rights Amendment.
And then the 80s ushered in the backlash against equality as difference became the essential element of one's identity and voices of women of color,
Queer and transgendered women and differently abled women moved from margin to center,
Such as in the work of bell hooks.
Then in the 90s,
Identity politics was crushed into the heady wine of social constructionism,
Such as from the theorist Judith Butler,
And feminism moved mainly into an academic realm where one had to have a graduate degree to understand the discourse.
As Y2K fears came and went,
The year 2000 witnessed many straight white middle class women finding an alternative space where mothering and feminism might coexist,
Such as in the book Mama PhD,
Or the website Literary Mama,
And some women rejected the term feminism altogether.
As these women raised women who are now in their 20s,
And who eschew categories,
Labels and solid identities of sexuality and gender,
We are reaching a point where there are several generations of different kinds of feminisms,
All alive and thriving at the same time.
So what does it mean to intergenerate?
It depends on where you are in the life cycle spectrum.
I use the term cycle spectrum because cycle sounds like we keep repeating and circling back,
Which we do,
But at a higher,
More evolved level,
And we also move back and forth along a rainbow path.
If you reread this mini history of feminism,
And apply it to your own life,
You'll be able to see where you might be in the cycle spectrum.
So consciousness raising housewives might be something you identify with if you're balancing fitting in with self expression.
The liberal feminist equalizers might be your group,
If you're working hard to succeed as an equal.
The difference feminists might speak to you if you're beginning to recognize what you've pushed away,
Parts of yourself,
Parts of others.
The social constructionists might be your group,
If you're engaged in pulling the veil off the power structures in society and in your own life.
The mother feminists may be your group,
If you're committed to nurturing self and others,
And the anti-labelists are creating new ways of being in the world.
So let's look again at this list.
All of the terms that I listed are nouns,
Things,
Names,
We call ourselves and each other.
In this way,
They lean toward the means of the old paradigm that we've discussed before in joy work.
And the terms after them are verbs or to be precise gerunds,
Ing endings.
Thank you very much to my Latin teacher,
Sister Petra.
What this means is that as you locate your place on the cycle spectrum,
You are in motion.
You are moving,
You are doing,
You are becoming.
Let me say it more clearly.
Wherever,
Whenever,
Whatever you are right now is perfectly fine.
We are not things,
We are beings in motion becoming.
And as we do that,
It's also important to honor the legacies of those who have come before.
What we are going to do today is to meditate upon the guides and ancestors and mentors and role models and teachers and gurus and elements we need to support us right now,
When,
Where,
However we are.
This will allow us to move into deep time and create evolution,
Revolution,
Growth,
Healing and change.
We will do the loving kindness meditation to call in this support.
So stretch your body and begin to move into a comfortable position.
Maybe grab your meditation blanket or cushion.
Begin by sitting quietly and comfortably.
Sit in a comfortable way but without being in a sleepy position.
For example,
Sit with your back straight,
Head up,
Feet on the floor or legs crossed and your arms gently in your lap.
Simply sit and notice yourself sitting.
Breathe naturally.
Watch your breath going in and your breath going out.
Keep focusing on your breath.
And then place your attention on the area around your heart.
As you focus yourself on the area in the middle of your chest,
Repeat to yourself gently and softly feeling the resonance of these words.
Love,
Love,
Love.
May my heart be filled with love.
As you say this,
If you like,
You can bring to mind something that you feel loving and caring towards.
It may be an image of a soft lovable dog or the serene look on someone's face or a baby or the feeling of the soft fur as you stroke a kitten.
This image is simply to help you kickstart the feelings.
If a feeling of loving kindness arises on your own,
Without the need of these images,
That's okay too.
And now begin to experience feeling love through your whole body.
Experience this feeling of warmth and love expanding from your chest area and moving out through your shoulders,
Arms,
Torso,
Legs to the top of your head.
Allow yourself to feel this sense of caring,
Healing and soothing.
Let it wash over you and through you while you gently repeat silently to yourself,
May I be happy?
May I be healthy?
May I be safe?
May I feel peace?
Now bring into your mind someone you like a lot and respect,
A teacher,
Guru,
Mentor,
Guide.
Send them these feelings of warmth and caring as you wish them well,
Repeating silently to yourself,
May you be happy?
May you be healthy?
May you be safe?
May you feel peace?
Let the image recede and then bring to mind someone who inspires you to stay calm and neutral.
Imagine them with you now.
Remember why you admire them.
Send them these feelings of warmth and caring as you wish them well,
Repeating silently to yourself,
May you be happy?
May you be healthy?
May you be safe?
May you feel peace?
Let this image recede as you bring to mind someone who can help you deal with conflict.
Bring their image to mind.
Imagine them with you now.
Remember why you admire them.
Send them these feelings of warmth and caring as you wish them well,
Repeating silently to yourself,
May you be happy?
May you be healthy?
May you be safe?
May you feel peace?
Let that image recede and then begin to radiate the warmth and love to your guides,
Angels,
Spirits or ancestors.
All the people who support you,
All the beings who are on your team.
Bring their image to mind.
Imagine them surrounding you now.
Feel their energy and love and send them these feelings of warmth and caring as you wish them well,
Repeating silently,
May we be happy?
May we be healthy?
May we be safe?
May we feel peace?
And then let that image go and begin to bring your attention back to yourself,
Focusing once again on your body,
Your breath.
So the feeling of loving kindness fills your whole being,
Breathing in peacefully,
Breathing out peacefully,
At peace with yourself and the world.
Then slowly let the feelings of loving kindness ease and return once again to focusing on just your breathing.
And then return once again to noticing yourself sitting in the room in the present time,
In the present season.
And when you're ready,
Gently and slowly open your eyes and return to the room.
In our next joy work lesson,
We will be journaling about this exercise.
So in the meantime,
You may want to repeat this loving kindness meditation a few more times as a way of anchoring yourself in the midst of generations of support.
From a place of empowerment and honoring.
