Herewith, three “gifts” one 40-something woman would give a 20-something if she were a “Forty-Godmother”. What are yours?
~1~
A lifelong friend who is your mirror.
A friend that stays with your from your twenties to your forties is your mirror. Your friends that stay with you from your youth through your forties are so valuable because they are such a good mirror of who you are, who you can be and who you were. I value the education that I picked up along the way from my family and friends along as much as my formal education.
~2~
Good headlights.
Going from your twenties to your forties is like driving cross country. Let’s pretend it’s night the whole time you’re driving. You have your headlights on driving. You can only see so far but you’re still going to make it to L.A. even though you can only as far as the headlights. That’s what got me to L.A. I was like I don’t know what to do once I get there but I’m a smart woman and I will learn how to network and I will figure something out. You don’t always have all the answers beyond the headlights but the headlights will get you there and you will find the right opportunities when you get there.
~3~
Acceptance of your body.
One thing I’ve learned about myself and from other women is that when you feel comfortable with your body, the intimacy is easier to gauge in a relationship. It’s like with riding horses. If you don’t know your power the horse can sense it and will take you in the direction that it wants to go. It will test you and make you feel out of control. It’s the same with knowing the power of your body. Accepting your body does not necessarily mean being thin. But if you are not happy with yourself do something about it. It doesn’t matter what. If you want to get things hacked up, go for it, but preferably, work on it yourself because psychologically I think you will get more out of exercise than surgery.
– 40-something who drove from Pennsylvania to New York City to Florida and LA and then back to Pennsylvania and learned a lot along the way. Married , runs her own consulting business.