There are a lot of ways to be bold. When it comes to girls, though, society tends to have a frighteningly narrow description of what it means to be strong and female. We're coming up with a different story. A story that recognizes female strength as having different dimensions, like living through chronic pain, or fierce loyalty towards family, or being kind in a cruel world. I asked five women from around the world why they have strength. This is what they said.
I am a full-time wedding and portrait photographer. I travel to any destination and capture people's different adventure stories.
I am a strong girl because physically and emotionally, it takes a lot of energy, creativity and strength to shoot a wedding. Normally I am on my feet for 12 hours. I don't take breaks, and I have to to carry equipment and engage with people in a friendly and professional manner throughout the day.
Usually the day after a wedding, I will discover that my wrist is in pain, or my lower back is sore. I might even discover countless bruises (like the one above from last week’s wedding) all over my body from how I pushed myself to get that perfect shot. All of this in the name of creativity. I don't feel the strain I put my body through while I am shooting, and I don’t regret it even after I recover. I love what I do, and wouldn't trade it for anything.
Being strong is part of my job and it is good to know that my work challenges me with every project I take on.
TENIOLA, AUSTRALIA .
I am strong because in moving halfway across the world from my friends and family in Portland, Oregon, to Sydney, Australia, I’ve learned through time and experience that it’s not a weak trait to be dependent on God and His timing. Being patient, being still in the silence, continuing to trust and love Him, and being hopeful that circumstances do indeed get better are some of the toughest things I’ve ever done. It’s for all of that I’m beyond proud of the last three years of my life. It’s because of that I can call myself a strong girl.
ANN, SOUTH AFRICA.
I am a girl. I am strong. I love flowers and leaves. My legs are hairy. Glitter is my favorite man-made thing. I care too much about my relationships. I believe that tying ribbons around anything instantly makes it a 100 percent cuter. I lift weights. Sometime I wear dresses and sometimes I wear combat boots. Both times I slay. I worry often about what other people think of me. I am studying medicine so that one day I can work in the MSF and level the scales of equality in health care in my small way. I cry every time I watch Tarzan. Not one of these things makes me feel weak and less of a girl. Not one of these things is more important in helping me define myself as strong. I am strong just because I am. Just like I am a girl just because I am.
STEPHANIE, USA.
I am strong because I am a mother . I continue to choose to be confident and remind myself that I am enough. Being a mother makes me strong because I am molding a future generation. I am investing time, lots of energy and endless amounts of love in this little being. I show strength in every day life so that she will learn how to be strong and confident in her life. I choose to fight self doubt and be an example of acceptance so she knows she is always accepted.
RUBY, SOUTH AFRICA.
I am strong because I am letting go.
Swallows lift and fight the ocean winds. Then, their wings are still. They are tossed through the salty air, unafraid of someplace new. Their strength isn't their flight, it's their letting go.
My strength is waking up to my own body. It's 'no' on my tongue. It's 'yes'. It's cleaning someone's alcohol-blood off white tiles -- 11-years-old.
I'm strong because I feel and fear endlessly, yet I'm still here, watching birds. I've never felt strong. I can't lift my piano alone. I've never felt emotionally stable. But I'm standing on mountains, chest heaving, entirely unafraid of all I've left behind.
