If there is one positive that has come from the global pandemic, it is the way we have started to question everything.

The world has been built upon patriarchal structures that have fed us a constant diet of "here's what you're allowed to think and do and be and believe." Our education systems, business and corporate systems, mainstream media... so much of what we believe to be true about the world and who we are (and can be) is conditioning that we have been exposed to since our earliest memories.

As women, that has been a patriarchal influence that has kept us small, quiet, and powerless. 

So when 2020 saw the Covid pandemic hit and the world stopped, we withdrew into our own lives and homes with a sense of discomfort that we struggled to identify.

Was it because we were suddenly trying to juggle even more than we usually had? Did we suddenly realise that the roles we play in society were less secure, yet more specific, than we had previously believed?

Whatever the underlying reason, one thing has become abundantly clear for most of us: The truth we have been told all along is a great big lie.

That realisation has been a real challenge to reconcile for women. We have had to witness ourselves, with compassion and without judgement, as we unpack the layers of patriarchal messaging that told us what space we could inhabit in the world. How to engage with each other. What we are allowed to do. Why we can't ask for more.

That last one was the real kicker. Because as much as we are beginning to understand we have been sold a story that doesn't serve us, asking for more still feels deeply uncomfortable and like "too much" for a lot of us.

When we really start to look at what more means, we are immediately caught in the challenge of learning how to think for ourselves. How exactly do we tear down generations of conditioning and start to uncover the real truth?

There are those of us who have been on this particular journey for some time, certainly before the global pandemic forced us into a rapid and uncomfortable self-examination. But, if you are just starting to sense the growing discomfort and tension between your own knowing and the truth you've always been told, know this:

No one can tell you the truth, because the truth comes from within you.

Your own wisdom, your inner knowing, your connection to your intuition... THAT is where the truth resides.

Your truth won't look the same as the truth of anyone else. In fact, there are likely glaring differences between what you know to be true for you, and what some of the people closest to you might believe. Right now, you are being invited by the Universe to explore that, to question what you have been told and sold, and to connect to what is actually true for you.

One thing is certain: Once you know your truth, you will never be the same.

A woman who knows her truth is a powerful being. That's why the patriarchy has been so afraid of her, and so determined to continue the indoctrination of women into the "stay small, keep quiet, be a good girl and do as you're told" system that the world has accepted, embraced even, for generations.

No more.

We are changed. Even the slightest awareness that what we have been told might not be true is enough to tip the balance in our favour, and to start that collective rising of powerful women who will change the world.

It starts with questioning everything, and being willing to de-condition so that we can connect with our truth.

When we know who we really are, and what truth we have been withholding from ourselves under layers of patriarchy and powerlessness, we can heal ourselves and become stronger. Braver. Bolder.

We can be bigger in the world, and we can rise.

That is the awakening the world needs from us. That is the space of expansiveness and growth that will change everything. 

Reconnecting with our wisdom. Living in alignment with natural cycles. Bringing forward radical self acceptance. Embracing the harmony between our woundedness as human beings, and our sacredness as spiritual beings.

Awakening the Wise Woman. 

If you have felt that rising within you, and haven't felt certain about what to do with it... but know you absolutely can't ignore it, you are not alone. 

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For those of you ready to explore who you really are, and what you could be in the world, the Cycle of Self program is a great place to start. Created to guide you through the process of connecting to your own truth, the Cycle of Self is a self-directed journey through awakening and stepping into your power. You can read more here.