Some girls make it

Some girls make it and some girls don't. Imagine our daughter Lisa at age 16 and 50 years later, if she had decided to stay. British actress Dame Helen Mirren www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VpmUCoPMSw .

"I'm worth it. Those words just get better with age, don't they? I'm worth it. But they are still radical, unfortunately. You know, when I was growing up, a woman who believed in her worth, outside of her youth or her sexuality, was seen as unusual. Because if you challenged the culture, then you were either mad or bad or sad, or all of those things put together.

I remember, at 15 years old, realizing that my thought processes, my imagination, my will, none of that really mattered. Not really. And that broke my heart, and then it made me so angry, because I felt cheated. I felt cheated out of my right to define my life and my value on my terms. Because everybody's worth that, aren't they? But when I stood up for myself I was called argumentative. Oh no, I was difficult, I was aggressive. All of those words that we try to use and shut people up and avoid changing things.

But I knew I had to do it. I had to, there was no alternative. Because, well I could just see, I could see how much change had to come. I'm worth it. It's the simplest and it's the purest acknowledgement of the fact that I have agency, I have opinions, I have value. I have so many things to offer beyond my race, my body, my gender, my age. I'm worth it. You're worth it. Those words are still radical because we still need them. I'm worth it. Simple as that."

Join our regular exchanges at LinkedIn group A Chance for Happiness ? Connecting mental health thought leaders and changemakers around the world. www.dhirubhai.net/groups/5035162

And if you want to make a personal difference and talk about it, like we do, too, join us for A Chance for Happiness London Mental Health Week October 3-10, 2023.?www.gofundme.com/f/achanceforhappinesslondon2023?It's easy. For more information, please get in touch at office at topcontext dot com.

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