Women are different than men, and by virtue of this difference create something unique and different than men. Claiming our unique contribution to life as women is not a negation of men, or of their importance, in any way. Women are not in competition with men, do not need to put down, eliminate or exclude them in any way. In fact we want them to be our partners in creating a beautiful world. Men are essential in creating a society which respects and supports life, which is the kind of society we want. This means abundant health, education, culture and security for all.

As to be in our feminine nature is to include, ignoring, isolating men, or negating them in any way is an anathema to our own essence. We need to include, we need to teach. To teach we need to understand who we are and what we want.

As women we are, in general, the carrier of feminine qualities. Not every woman in the same way. Owning our feminine side does not mean we are all exactly alike, but it does mean that there is a reservoir of common traits from which we source ourselves. As a nubile college student I learned in my anthropology classes that women are the carriers of culture, and often the creators. In the last 40 years I have experienced this and seen it to be true. Women keep and pass on the traditions which hold societies together. They are central to society. They are the center of the circle.

Men stand for certain things as well.

Standing up for who we are and what we want leads to us getting the kind of world we want to have. Finding our voice and consolidating it makes a difference. Discovering our values, being in harmony with ourselves, and learning to speak our truth can lead to getting our needs met.

Women make a particular contribution to society, to culture, to human life, and to life on the planet. We can enlist men to help us carry this out. We may be central, but we are not alone. We need and want men to help us create the dream we have of a wonderful world. Neither gender can do this alone. For the accomplishment of this goal there must be partnership, inclusiveness and integration. There must be mutual respect and interaction, and that is something that we need to learn how to create. For us it means learning to respect ourselves, believing in ourselves and learning how to effectively get respect when it is not given.

Owning ourselves as women does not deny the uniqueness of each of us, or the necessity for freedom and encouragement for each of us, each human on the planet, to become the fully flowered individual that we can become. I always think of us as flowers because flowers come in such variety and yet are all so beautiful or unusual or special in some way. Anything in nature will do however. The infinite variety and beauty of nature must tell us that we are also beautiful and unique, as we are of the natural order.

Our position in society gives us power. After all, we are everywhere. And in our values and goals we have a great deal in common. We are capable of bringing children into the world, we love them and we want to see them nurtured. Not to the exclusion of others who want the same. It is not a far fetched idea that women globally unite, crossing cultural, economic, national and other barriers. We have much in common and we are coming from a cooperative, relationship-conscious place. To be powerful in the world for us firstly requires recognizing our own value - and claiming what is important to us.

Because we care about life, about others, we are perhaps the most beautiful and significant life form on the planet.

Please pause for a moment and take in this possibility: women are beautiful, and extremely significant beings on the planet.

From this day on consider yourself as the most beautiful and significant being on the planet, just because you are a women.

So let's enjoy our lives, but let us also role up our sleeves and get to work.