Recently, I attended a Holiday party with my husband.  It was one of those gatherings where there was a magnetic buzz and energy in the room (as a coach I’m trained to notice such - we call it “Level 3 listening”), and despite a high noise level and somewhat crowded conditions, I managed to have great conversations and connections with friends and first-time meetings.
 
I’m most certain that the outcome for me - I felt so filled up coming home (and not from food or wine, although that was certainly yummy!) - was due in part to the energy and mind-set that I went to the party with. I had expected it to be great, yet not in a way of putting my expectations on a sign hanging around my neck which would read: “Meet these, please!”  No, it was an intention that I had had (and I’m not quite sure why), and then simply let go of. It rested somewhere in the background, kind of like creating a lovely table setting for dinner vs. grabbing paper towels for napkins as you make your way over with the food.

But I digress, as the reason I write about this is because of something else, which does relate to the outcome of my evening.

And that is the topic of JOY, Savvy Aunties. And the feminine. Savvy Aunties being JOYOUS.  Do you know that it is our birthright to be JOYOUS?  That we, as women, are meant to experience and through that, spread JOY to others?

Walking in the door, I met up with a friend I hadn’t seen in some time.  I knew that she had been back and forth with a man that’s been in her life for years, and that recently the relationship had ended.  We spoke of it, and she told me of the struggle, and now of what she is up to, including losing extra weight she felt she was carrying while she was unhappy.

Authentic Joy

This Savvy Auntie looked radiant.  When we had hugged hello, I could feel her JOY.  Yes, it was tinged with other things - transition, being with ‘what is’ (a love was changing form, no longer her boyfriend), giddiness about new possibilities.  But, the JOY of standing in her truth and facing it, and living life was palpable.  Call it a more subtle, quiet JOY - but it was JOY.

Later, I saw a few women that I hadn’t seen in some time.  We were catching up, being silly and at times laughing loudly.  I noticed that a few men nearby couldn’t take their eyes off of us.  Another man, and friend of my husband's, later told me how nice it is to watch and listen to women laughing together.

We were JOYOUS.  Women have a way of being JOYOUS together that is SO attractive, SO contagious, and SO necessary. 

And, we can also be JOYOUS alone - just with and being ourselves.  When a woman feels joyous she has lightness to her walk and to her face.  It truly attracts the world - plants, animals, children, men, and women.  This AUTHENTIC JOY is what truly moves mountains, amongst all the rest.

Please remember to fill yourself up with JOY on a regular basis.  Take inventory of what you can be grateful for if you are questioning what you can feel JOYOUS about. The simple things truly bring us the greatest JOY.  If you have other Savvy Aunties in your life, connect with them on a regular basis.  If you don’t, make it a goal to change that and cultivate connections with other women.  This is an important part of cultivating and replenishing the feminine within us - being around other women and being JOYOUS together.

It is so contagious, so magnetic, and so attractive.