Donald Trump has taken office and is officially the 45th President of the United States.  Women all over the country and the world are uniting to protect our rights as well as the rights of POC, immigrants, LGBTQ, people with disabilities, and for human rights in general.  This is amazing and I am optimistic that it will continue.  I have no intention of getting political in this article.  I do, however, want to take a moment to talk about women supporting each other rather than tearing each other apart.   
It has become a norm for women to tear one another down rather than appreciate our difference and support one another.  I am certain I have been guilty of this at some point in my life.  For some, we do it to make ourselves feel better.  For others, it is simply the way they build themselves up and they enjoy watching other women crumble.    
The shift will not be easily made, but I intend to work every day to appreciate our differences.  If we can learn to allow one another to be the strong, powerful, unique, amazing women we are, we have the opportunity to be an unbelievable force in this world.   It is going to take courage and determination by learning how to tune out the constant stream of communication telling us we need to conform to societal requirements.  We are going to have to stop fighting with one another and start working together.   
I hear too many women saying "I am against abortion it should be illegal".  Supporting a woman's right to make the best choice about her life is part of what equality is about.  In the face of many different faiths and beliefs, let us work together to overcome the challenges we all face.   
My challenge to you:  Next time you are with your female friends or you meet someone new, get to know them and work really hard to take your own opinions out of the equation.  We will certainly not agree on everything and our paths in life will probably be very different,  however, we absolutely have to support one another.  If we continue to fight and tear one another down, how can we ever expect progress to be made?  

I think we have all heard the saying: "You will not be everyone's cup of tea."  The older I get the more I realize this is so true and that it is also okay.  See, a cup of tea is wonderful.  It is warm and comforting and for people who enjoy tea, it makes us feel happy.  A person can have many cups of tea in their life but some will only have few glasses of champagne.

What I mean is that not everyone who comes into your life is supposed to stay in your life.  There are certain people who enter our lives that are only meant to teach us something or are only supposed to be there temporarily.  These people are great because we usually get some sort of life lesson from these cups of tea. 

Sometimes we need these people for a short period of time to remind us what life is about.  How to have fun, how to laugh, what we need to change, or often-times a necessary lesson to help us grow.  While these are sometimes painful experiences, kind of like pouring hot tea on yourself, they are usually short lived but the lesson learned is long lasting. 


On to the glass of champagne…


Some of us are lucky enough to have a few glasses of champagne in our lives.  Most of us get lucky enough to at least have one.  These people are altogether different than the cups of tea.  They are bubbly and sparkling.  They bring something amazing into our lives and usually they stay. 

I have been lucky enough to have a few of these champagne people enter my life and make it better than I could have imagined.  If you only have one or have multiple you should consider it a blessing.  These humans, that are your glass of champagne, are you people.  These friends are the people you get to grow with.  If you are really lucky you also get to be their glass of champagne.  You get to be your genuine self, weird, quirky, painfully honest, and they most likely will love you regardless.  This is what some would refer to as, "finding your tribe". 


So when the tea gets cold it is alright to pour it out.  Just make sure you cherish the glass or glasses of champagne.  I know I cherish mine.