Baby boomers are turning 60 in 2008. What
difference does it make. Boomer women continue to make a difference
in the lives of loved ones and society and will until the day we
die. Age doesn't matter to us.
People should know age has never meant anything to baby boomers.
We don't care about the years creeping up on us. We simply care
about feeling good and making a difference no matter how old we are.
Especially baby boomer women.
There are 38 million of us turning ages 42 to 60. The sheer number
of us is changing the image of midlife women like no other
generation before. Middle age finds us pondering how we've lived the
first half of our lives and what to do about the second. Some of us
are in the grips of a midlife crisis, going through Andropause or
even considering cosmetic makeovers. Many are caring for elderly
parents while parenting our children and working full time. But
don't let that concern you. Boomer women are reinventing themselves
at midlife by choosing to follow their passions.
As little girls we lived the simple life. Moms were at home caring
for their children and husbands; dads worked nine to five and dinner
was on the table at six. We jumped rope, played hop-scotch, married
off Barbie and Ken, and played with our Hula Hoops and Slinkies.
Violence in school meant the few boys who threw eggs at the windows
of their least favorite teacher. We practiced duck-and-cover drills
and wore silver bracelets with our POW's name and birth date.
The first wave of boomer women came of age during the women's
movement and civil right's era. We protested Vietnam while losing
boyfriends in battle. Some of us burned our bras and helped spark a
sexual revolution in the 1960s and early '70s.
The second wave of boomer women benefited from the women's movement.
We had greater access to legal abortions and the pill. We led a
metamorphosis from housewives to career women. This group came of
age in the late 1970s and early '80s. We created the diet and
fitness craze, but were also responsible for ushering in a society
that is more global in its thinking while becoming more conscious of
individual rights and our environment.
In the 1960s, when some boomers were in diapers and others entered
adulthood, society-shaping events took place: the assassinations of
JFK, MLK, Malcolm X, and RFK; racial riots; Roe v. Wade; the moon
landing; and The Beatles. Woodstock, the celebration of peace, love,
and rock and roll, codified a generational divide once and for all.
As young women we were told the world was our oyster. We should DO
something with our lives. We should never become dependent on a man.
We were the generation that could have it all, do it all, and be it
all. Education, Prince Charming, families, careers—you name it and
we could have it. We chose diverse paths. Some of us aborted our
babies while others gave birth. Some chose the corporate ladder
while others chose to stay home. Some lived together while friends
married. Some of us divorced and became single moms while others
chose to stay in loveless marriages.
We chose to challenge ideas and reinvent lifestyles. We altered the
traditional role of the sexes as we played tug-of-war with work and
home. Believing the voices we heard, we attacked life with a
vengeance, entering the workforce while exchanging our roller skates
for pumps, candy necklaces for pearls, and wax lips for lip gloss.
We returned to the workplace three months after giving birth,
pumping our breasts at lunchtime. The societal expectation was for
us to work. Our self worth was questioned when we chose to stay home
like our mothers before us. Staying home meant we didn't get a pay
check and chanced missing the next rung on that corporate ladder. We
felt guilty leaving our children in child care while our friends who
stayed home felt guilty for not working.
At midlife the 40s and 50s are no longer as old as we once thought.
We are more educated, spiritual, wealthy, and healthier than any
generation of women to precede us. We've changed society's
expectation and continue to redefine womanhood. We will be the
biggest and richest market segment by the year 2010.
At midlife we're transforming and influencing every segment of
society. With children leaving the nest, we have time to reflect.
We're going inward, hiring life coaches, exploring, and finding new
direction. We're seeking spiritual guidance and questioning if we've
been true to ourselves or society's expectations. We're searching
for peace, solace, and direction for the rest of our days on earth
and the afterlife. We're seeking balance and pursuing our passions.
We're no longer obsessed with being who others want us to be. We're
finding contentment in who we are being called to be.
We've had more choices than our mother's generation and have lived
and continue to navigate uncharted courses. We are pioneers in our
own right. We're faithful, loving, and hard-working women who
multi-task to survive. We continue to better ourselves so we can
help those who need us. We come from various backgrounds carrying
different baggage. We love our country. We're trying to be all that
we can be.
At midlife we're celebrating and reflecting while experiencing
midlife epiphanies. We are wise women who have lived, loved, and
enjoyed making a difference. And will continue to do so.
About the Author -
Dotsie Bregel is Executive Founder the National
Association of Baby Boomer Women http://www.nabbw.com which
encourages women to find their passions and live life to the
fullest. She is also Founder of Boomer Women Speak,
http://www.boomerwomenspeak.com the # 1 site on the Web for baby
boomer women. She is passionate about women encouraging, connecting,
and supporting one another. She may be reached through her sites.
Andropause Home | Andropause
Symptoms | Male Hot Flashes | Male Night Sweats | Andropause
Doctors
|
