She had been going through the Change. Her body, always a well-known friend, now sometimes left her disappointed. First, more frequent periods left her anemic, her cells slowly dying for lack of oxygen. Then regular cycles became a thing of the past, so she always had to arm herself with tampons. Eventually cycles slowed to rare events, finally never to return.
Meanwhile her skin loosened, her hair grayed and thinned and her middle expanded. She’d never had to worry about weight before but now her size had grown just when she most wanted to hide away, like a shy adolescent.
Her daughter gave her encouragement. “Mom, why don’t you explore your new body, your new options? Who are you now? A butterfly, might be confused because she isn’t a caterpillar anymore. Test your new ways to move in the world, your new ways to nourish yourself. Now you can drink nectar from flowers instead of eating leaves.”
And so she did.
--by Terra Rafael
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