For Women - A Letter from Shelly

​Like you, I've spent much of my life chasing happiness. I've looked for it in relationships with men, food, a better career, more money, a better body, nicer clothes . . . . The list goes on and on. It seems I was always trying to "get to" something. Some better place always seemed to call me. It seemed to be waiting, just around the corner. It promised great things if only I would just keep trying, just keep working at it.

I pursued activities and interests that fit the image I had of myself. I was always striving to be a better, more "enlightened," and ultimately more lovable version of Shelly.

And then, thanks to doctor-ordered bedrest, I found myself flat on my back, alone, week after week, in the silence, with myself. No one was there to love me, tell me I was wonderful, and make me feel better. I had only myself. That's when I knew that no one could ever love me as well as I could. Feeling loved and feeling lovable was up to me.

"I forgave myself for not being perfect."

All I ever wanted was to be happy and I realized that the key to my happiness, was my own love - not the kind I get and not the kind I give, but the kind that's in me, the kind that I am.

This realization offered a new level of empowerment and freedom for me and one that I felt compelled to share. That's when this on-line journal for women was born. It was created as a way to encourage, inspire, and empower other women to claim their own love and happiness. It has also been a way to bring women together who are fed up, who are literally sick and tired of looking for "it" where it isn't. It is a place to feel supported and united in a shared experience, a shared longing, that transcends age, race, religious, or political beliefs . . . .

Because love, real love, is bigger than all of that.

And, so are we.