they convinced me
i only had a few good years left
before i was replaced by a girl younger than me
as though men yield power with age
but women grow into irrelevance
they can keep their lies
for i have only gotten started
i feel as though i just left the womb
my twenties are the warm-up
for what i’m really about to do
wait till you see me in my thirties
now that will be a proper introduction
to the nasty, wild, woman in me.
how can i leave before the party’s started
rehearsals begin at forty
i ripen with age
i do not come with an expiration date
and now
for the main event
curtains up at fifty
let’s begin the show

~rupi kaur
“the sun and her flowers”

***I didn’t write this, but wish I had. It is written, however,
just the way the author wrote it in her book. This poem conveys
everything I feel. Women have come a long way in society,
but the subordinate label, as well as ramifications of aging,
continue to pop up now and then. The author has lived
a life difficult to even imagine, and her writing tugs at the
heart and kicks you in the gut simultaneously. I’m currently
reading this book (her second), and I also recommend her
first book, “Milk and Honey.”
Admittedly, when I entered my fifties, I experienced
a similar feeling of dread – “i only had a few good years left.”
I have since then shed that mind-set and replaced it with a
“let’s go” attitude. So, Women, whether you’re warming up,
planning your introduction, busy with rehearsals, or
eager for the main event…“You Go Girl!”
~Lauren Scott ❤