This blog is by our newest contributor Jacquelyn Grace. It's called 'Womanhood'
It is beautiful and says so much about becoming a woman in our society. Good job doll.
#teamgoodgirlapproved
Disclaimer: The author was not paid to endorse any particular brands for feminine hygiene products. However, if you would like to film her in a tampon commercial, please reach out to her agent. Thank you.
No big deal.
My mom's first period was something else.
No one told her what it would be like. When she looked down one day and saw all the red, she screamed bloody murder. She thought she was dying.
Her mother and her aunts gathered around her and calmed her down.
Then, they proceeded to steep an array of herbs in water and bathe her gently.
Afterwards, they told her to lie down and rest, and they would not let her lift a finger.
She was treated like a queen for the rest of the day.
Wow.
I'm not sure if other families in the Philippines do this, but when she told me this, I got so jealous.
Why wasn't I bathed with herbs? Why was I unceremoniously given a Kotex pad instead of a day of relaxation?
Once my envy died down, I realized something crucial about our society: how we approach our first period is how we approach womanhood. Although I wish someone warned my mom about her period, I could see that this moment of her life was treated as a celebration of her coming of age.
I'm not saying we need to lather our bodies in herbs or throw a themed party, but we need to discuss this moment in our lives with excitement, not dread.
As my grandma and her sisters tended to my mother, they were silently saying, "Welcome to womanhood. You have your whole life ahead of you. Soon, you will realize how much you're capable of." My mom and the mother figures in her life looked forward to her growing up. It was something positive.
I'm not sure what happened to my mother in the years between her first period and when she had me, but something must have scared her. From the moment I came into the world, I imagine she was not only filled with joy but fear.
Even though my mom made sure I was prepared for this moment, she made sure to treat it with as much nonchalance as possible. Yes, she was trying to make sure I wasn't freaking out, but that also communicated to me her reluctance to see her little girl grow up. My development fed her fears of not being able to protect me from the world. My inability to at first accept the womanly parts developing before my eyes fed my fears as well. My new hips. My new breasts. Would people look at me differently? Must I now enter that dance between women and men? I did not feel ready for all this adult stuff. The fact that my period started so early at age 11 did not help us cope either.
It's been over a decade since my first period, and eventually we both accepted that I had to one day grow up. Over time, I realized that I was capable of protecting myself, and that being an adult can be as fun, if not more fun, than childhood.
Now I have cousins who look up to me, and one day I might have a daughter. What I want to communicate to them is that they can approach their womanhood with courage and excitement. Being a woman isn't easy, but womanhood is full of so many wonderful things, like having choices and being in charge of myself. I just want young ladies everywhere to realize that yes, the blood ain't pretty, but all that red is a bright, blaring signal that there is so much for them to look forward to.
By: My Grace AKA Jacquelyn Grace
A Good Girl Chronicles Exclusive Contributor
#womenwhoslay
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