I Will Not Die an Unlived Life
I will not die an unlived life,
I will not live in fear
of falling or catching fire.
I choose to inhabit my days,
to allow my living to open me,
to make me less afraid, more accessible;
To loosen my heart
until it becomes a wing,
a torch, a promise.
I choose to risk my significance,
to live so that which came to me as seed
goes to the next as blossom,
and that which came to me as blossom,
Goes on as fruit.
-Dawna Markova, I Will Not Die an Unlived Life
"The moment a woman comes home to herself, the moment she knows she has become a person of influence, an artist of her life, a sculptor of her universe, a person with rights and responsibilities who is respected and recognized, the resurrection of the world begins." ~ Sister Chittister
"Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not living in eternity. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand - and melting like a snowflake." ~ Marie Beynon Ray
"As long as we recognize the power within us, we will continue to have choices, and we will continue to lead. The source of that power can be the other people who guide us. It can come from the knowledge that courageous women throughout history paved the way for us. It can come from our roots an our families, which give us the strength. And it must come from within ourselves - from our faith, our accomplishments and our values. Know your power. When you do, others will know your power too."
~ Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, USA
"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." ~Eleanor Roosevelt
"Compassionate action starts with seeing yourself when you start to make yourself right and when you start to make yourself wrong. At that point you could just contemplate the fact that there is a larger alternative to wither of those, a more tender, shaky kind of place you should live." ~ Pema Chodron
"What do friendships mean for women? A landmark UCLA study suggests friendship between women help us manage stress. They soother inner ups and downs, fill emotional gaps, and help us navigate difficult times.... and they do even more.
The scientists have found that time with our friends can remedy the kind of stress many of us experience on a daily basis. This study suggests that women respond to stress with a cascade of brain chemicals that cause us to make and maintain friendships with other women. It's a stunning find that has turned five decades of stress research upside down - most of it on men and their fight or flight reaction to stress. So reach out to your women friends!" (Contact us at info@thewisdomconnection.com for a link to the full study.)
"There is a goodness, a Wisdom that arises, sometimes fitfully, sometimes gently, sometimes awkwardly, sometimes fiercely, but it will arise to save us if we let it, and it arises from within us, like the force that drives green shoots to break the winter ground, it will arise and drive us into a great blossoming into the aliveness of it all, into that part of ourselves that can never be defiled, defeated, or destroyed, but that comes back to life, time and time again, that lives - always - that does not die." ~ China Galland, The Bond Between Women: A Journey to Fierce Compassion.
"It is amazing how fast doors open to us
when we dare to take control."
~ Catherine Ponder
"I learned that inspiration does not always come like a bolt, nor is it kinetic, energetic, striving, but it comes into us slowly and quietly and all the time."
~ Brenda Ueland
"In this fast changing world, the pathways to success and fulfillment will rely on web-based networking, non-linear thinking, relationship-based approaches, and intuitive knowing - all fundamental parts of feminine wisdom. Imagine what might be possible when our wise feminine leadership is unleashed."
~ Karen Buckley and Fay Freed
"There cannot be too many glorious women." ~ Marianne Williams
"Crucial to finding the way is this: there is no beginning or end.
You must make your own map." ~ Joy Harj
"Our planet is in desperate need of women who love themselves. Women who use their time, energy, and resources to design life-affirming solutions for the challenges confronting humankind. Women who give birth to relationships of equality, strategies of peace, institutions of justice, and households of compassion."
~ Patricia Lynn Reilly
"When I dare to be powerful - to use my strength
in the service of my vision,
then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid."
~ Audre Lorde
