A Gift to Sisterhood

Remember the book and movie Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants? It's a feel-good, coming-of-age story about the bonds of female friendship. A group of childhood friends spend a summer apart, learning about their families and their cultures, while falling in love and gaining independence. The teen friends exchange letters and a pair of jeans that each one takes a turn wearing during her adventures. Each young woman's story is unique, as is her body shape, and herein lies the magic of the sisterhood. The jeans represent the power of the bonds of friendship. The jeans, like friendship, offer the right amount of support and stretch and look perfect on each woman. If you haven't seen it, grab your besties, a bottle of wine, and be ready to shed a tear or two.

2020 feels a little like I'm in the Sisterhood movie, you know, minus being a teen who is exploring my identity during a summer vacation and none of my jeans are magical because I can no longer zip any of them. Yet, here we all are- friends who once gathered, now living separate lives, apart from one another. The pandemic, and our world's collective quarantine, has shattered the busy rhythm of our lives, with forced down-time causing most of us to stop, pause, and reflect. For some, the isolation has offered us, or perhaps pushed us, to question our identities and our place in our families, mostly because we've been with them non-stop, watching their every breath and chew. Conversely, we have not seen other family members in a very long time, providing us with breathing room to consider our desired roles in the tree when the time comes for us to return to gathering. The solitude has also given us space to question our identities as professionals, community members and citizens. Whether serving as essential workers in a crisis, or learning to fulfill our duties full-time through a screen, we have all been pushed to work in ways, and at a pace, we've likely never experienced Some consider the crisis to be a reinvigoration of their professional passion or a door to opportunities they'd previously not explored. Others have struggled through the months, watching dreams and goals disintegrate, fighting to keep their businesses open, or experiencing job loss. Not a day has gone by since March when I have not asked myself, "Is this all really happening?" As I watch my kids move deeper into virtual reality and I read Trump's tweets which surely must be parody memes, I realize that, while in some ways time feels frozen, I am transforming. There is meaning in this moment, more than any moment that has come before. Like the women of the sisterhood, I am asking the big questions: how far have I come? Who am I? Where do I want to go? Who do I want to be? What do I want to do and who do I want to do it with? How will what is happening to me now shape what happens to me in the future? Like the sisterhood, my friends have distantly been there for me. We are each experiencing the pandemic in our own ways. Some of our experiences are identical, and we've said, "We are living parallel lives" on more than one occasion. Other stories are meant to be heard, journeys of hardship shared with someone who can say they have not been in your shoes but they are here for you any time of the day, with love and without judgement. Unlike the sisterhood in the movie, my age and life experience affords me many sisterhood circles, from every decade and area of my life. If I had those magic pants, they'd be very well worn, tattered and patched by now. As we all continue to be together- apart, and during this season of thankfulness and giving, I'd love to pass a magic piece of clothing to all of the women in my life who have provided me with kindness, love (sometimes very tough) and friendship. Should it be jeans, though? Jeans are perfect for teens, often marketed as pants for a fun, energetic and youthful generation. As I mentioned, my jeans are collecting dust in my closet, long unable to provide me with the magical stretch and support that I need as the pandemic continues. I feel anything but fun, energetic or youthful any time I pull them out, tug them up my legs and suck in my stomach so I can zip them up. I need to share something that resonates with me and my friends, a statement piece that speaks to a strong, confident, powerhouse generation. I went through my closet today to find that magical piece of clothing to share. It goes well dressed up with a chunky necklace and dangly earrings, perhaps paired with a festive holiday sweater, or under a vest for a hike in the woods. For over ten years, it has stretched to fit my body through each stage and shape, keeps me comfortable and warm, and it never wrinkles. Speaking of wrinkles, most importantly, it hides all the wrinkles that seem to be multiplying under my chin and down my neck, helping me cringe less during Zoom calls.

It is the perfect addition to any woman's wardrobe. I have wrapped it up in a box, made my friend list, and I am ready to share this magical piece that will support and sustain my friends on their life's journeys, adventures, explorations of moments of growth. It is time to begin the Sisterhood of the Traveling Turtleneck.