Earlier this week I attended an event in the House of Lords to celebrate 50 years of the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme and 50 years since the first woman sat in the Houses of Parliament. The theme of Monday's celebration was both the values which are core to the DofE Award Scheme and to recognise that women have equal oppportunities to participate in society.
It's over 30 years since I got a Bronze DofE Award and this evening was an opportunity to reflect on how it had enriched my life. Yes, of course there was the expedition bike ride (hills are not nearly flat as the girl tasked with route planning had told us!), playing the 'cello in a local old people's home, learning safety in the home and (surprisingly) canoeing in the winter in the English Channel. But that was just the means by which the experience was delivered. The recurring word though was values: the value of service, the value of determination, the value of self-confidence, the value of team-building.
There were some very touching moments. First, we were honoured with the presence of His Royal Highness, the Earl of Wessex, patron of the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, eponymously established by his father. I marvelled at how he ensured that during the evening he met the people for whom this event, and meeting him, was as important as their original Gold Awards from 50 years ago. It was a true example of professionalism and service.
Second, one of the very first women to earn her Gold Award 50 years ago gave a speech about how she had got involved in doing her DofE Award aged 17. When asked what she wanted to do as her interest by the venerable Ms Leopold she had replied "learn to drive". This was at a time when owning a car was for her family beyond her wildest dreams, let alone learning to drive. "I'll take care of that" came the reply. And so it was that she broke through the barrier of her own limits and understood the potential for life. Of course, DofE is hard, it's meant to stretch the mind, body and soul outside its comfort zone. But it was this little story, rather than the stories, which we all had of the challenges we'd faced on our expedition section, that really stood out for me. When I asked her afterwards how often she had said those words to others in the intervening years, she pondered for a while, it was a new question on the block, before realising that she too has said it to others many times since.
This was about celebrating women achieving their aspiration to be allowed equal access and equal opportunity to participate. We may not have got there completely but very significant inroads have been made. There was indeed much to celebrate.
And what of the next 50 years? What will we be celebrating in 50 years' time?
I feel that we are now looking for women to recognise within themselves their power to inspire.
The power of a woman is to conceive one seed and deliver it to be a tree of abundance. For that though she needs to have dropped all her fears, insecurities and traumas to give her the capacity to allow her love of life to shine and to offer the fruit of her experience to nurture those around her on the emotional and physical level.
A woman has the infinite power to bear fruit, as long as she acknowledges her womanliness. Just as a woman conceives a baby and becomes pregnant with it and then delivers it, so she also has that possibility to become impregnated with the inspiration of her surroundings, to conceive and nurture the future. What matters is how she is, how she enjoys being herself, now, in this moment, moment to moment. That shapes what she conceives and grows within her. If you are neurotic, then you will create a future which is neurotic. If you are insecure, then you will create a future which is insecure. If you are dramatic, then you will create a future full of dramas.
But if you are whole, complete, fulfilled, then you will create a future which is whole, complete, fulfilling for all those around you. If you conceive without the stains of your past influencing your present, you will create for yourself an immaculate future. Everything becomes possible. You are abundant, prosperous, and radiant. Then you can experience the joy of giving the fruit of your experience to someone to move their life on.
It is this very passion to see the women of the world embrace their potential to inspire that has led me to create the Be the Woman... Course and Online Community.
