I've had nine thousand hits; notes and flirts. Never in a million years did I anticipate so many to be curious about a woman my age. My profiles and verbiage are much different than most. I'm writing more articles to include dialogs because they are so telling.Even though I've been attracted to and dated younger men for two decades, never did it dawn on me to coin a phrase or join a movement to explain or justify my activity; my likes, my choices in men. Nor have I ever felt that I needed to join a group of women who call themselves 'cougars'. I entered the cougar world to see what this hullaballoo was all about.Recently I watched Tyra Bank's TV show featuring a panel of cougars, (40+ women and 50+ women). There were no women representing my decade which was telling. I would have given my eye teeth to have been on that panel at 65 years wise.As I sat there, watching Tyra's show, I was mesmerized by what I was seeing. The theme was a cougar pageant, the crowning of Ms. Cougar Arizona, yielding accolades and prizes for the winner. Some of the women had formed a clique of sorts and the winner of the contest was not a part of that group. I watched as the women in the clique became very judgmental of the woman who won the contest. Society has been dummied down to think this is okay behavior and our young are displaying traits that pattern these shows. Just look at the message The Jersey Shore sends to our youth. Unbelievably disturbing to this grandmother. Where have all the parents gone? I cringe at the message our daughters and granddaughters learn from these examples. It's obvious it's having an impact. Bullying in schools, out of control young women who mirror the behavior they see. Our sons and grandsons also suffer; the message affects the young men as much as the women. What kind of a message are we sending? Many of the cougar sites mimic the reality shows and convey a "party time, sex and games, meat-market environment." They hold no redeeming qualities when it comes to being part of setting the bar for the seasoned woman. My second emotion was sadness. Sad that women have such a difficult time joining forces, helping each other and respecting each other. Marianne Williamson, who wrote this piece from her book " A Woman's Worth" speaks worlds and it behooves us to heed her wisdom. "It's time to get started, time to wake up. Don't wait another minute. Claim your heart and claim your glory. You have all you need. Bless other women. Do not tear them down, remember, they are you--your sisters, teachers, |
