Dr. Brandy SchillaceJan 8, 2023
Listen, if you are feeling like it’s too late to follow your dreams or to change things, recall that the very first LIFE ON EARTH film by David Attenborough came out in the 70s when David was 53. Think of every amazing thing he has done since to change the world and promote the environment; these happened in his 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and now at 96 he is working on a new documentary in Scotland. I’m 45. It’s like I haven’t been born yet in David years. #nature #environment #aging #hope
Show threadFemme MalheureuseJan 9, 2023

@bschillace I think of Grandma Moses often when I think of age and creativity. She didn't start painting until in her late 70s.

In Hawaiian culture they referred to women seers as haka, but they didn't believe they could truly be haka until after they stopped bleeding. Goddess knows one can think about so many more things when one isn't worried about pregnancy or menstrual cycle, or anemic from blood loss, or fatigued from chasing children and addressing their needs.

Show threadDr. Brandy Schillace
@femme_mal I recall learning about a South American tribe where women in menopause were given a status akin to men (not the same but it always stuck with me)
Jan 9, 2023 at 2:51amMastodon for iOS
Show threadFemme MalheureuseJan 9, 2023
@bschillace In Hawaiian culture -- at least in Ka'u on the Big Island -- women would be obligated to separate from the rest of the family and stay in a hale pa'e during menstruation while the rest of the family stayed in their hale noa. In this respect women definitely didn't have the same status as men, but menopause would lift the kapu (taboo) obligating the separation.