What Is Feminine?

I have a question for my female readers. What exactly does it mean to you to be female? Does female and feminine conjure up images of frills and lace, a soft voice, a submissive posture, and domestic service? Or do you associate the feminine with power, confidence, competence, nurturing, and compassion? Or maybe a mixture of those qualities?

We're in a transitional time relative to sex roles in our culture. Women are now told they can 'have it all' - marriage, children, a career, an active role in the community, etc. Hey, they can even run for president! But women are also still living with more traditional role conditioning - both in their own heads and in the heads of their partners. That affects not only things like the division of labor in the household and in the care of children, but also affects how women feel about themselves. Women often suffer terrible guilt in their quest to have it all. They may begin to question what it means to be feminine in this world of new opportunities and a breakdown of old sex stereotyping.

Think about the times when you feel connected to your femininity. How you define yourself as a female has big implications for your sex life. I'll post more on that tomorrow.