I have had the honor and pleasure of spending this past week doing book events in Arizona and my home state of Texas! To say that I have been in awe of the unexpected level of passion and energy being generated by the ladies attending would be an understatement! The appetite and zest for my message on the merits of female friendship is beyond anything I could have ever imagined.
Last week I presented my book lecture and signing at two places in Scottsdale, Arizona. First, I was warmly welcomed and embraced by over 40 wonderful ladies at the DC RANCH Country Club, where my dear friend, Ginny and her husband, Tom, are members. After finishing my 90 minute presentation, we engaged in a book signing and meet and greet. I was blown away by the zest and enthusiasm shown by everyone for my message on the HEALING POWER OF GIRLFRIENDS. The energy and emotion in the room was highly palpable and made my heart pound, literally!
My second Arizona event was at the Maravilla Retirement Community where I was honored to speak to a room full of “SuperAgers”— those “young” ladies who are 80 years of age and above that are cognitively 20 to 30 years younger than their actual age. I speak of these vibrant, active, thriving females in my book, and seeing them in person was such a thrill for me! Many shared their personal stories, including one 87 year old who recently became a widow. But, she has adapted to her life at Maravilla much quicker because of her new female friends there. They all sat together in the front row at my event and were clearly all very connected and supportive of each other! It warmed my heart to see their smiles and their love for each other!
Yesterday, I did a book signing at a local women’s boutique, THE SALTED HIPPIE near my home. It was another amazing evening of meeting women of all ages and backgrounds who value the gift of girlfriends! Many of my own dear friends were in attendance, as were neighbors, and many new faces who wanted to learn more about this brand new book on friendship. During our chatting and signing, many of these women shared their own personal stories with me. In our short time together some bared their souls, sharing joys and sorrows. One very brave young lady shared her incredible grief of recently becoming a widow, and being uplifted by the love and support of her girlfriends during the past months. As the night went on, story after story was shared by one after another, all with the same ending…….”and it was my girlfriends that saved me.”
As I drove home last night from my book event, my heart was full of gratitude for all the special women I had met over the past week, and for the gift of their bravery to share these stories of pain, loss, sadness and even joy. It is in these moments I realize in a fresh new way, as my book clearly advocates, we are indeed transformed by the help and love from our girlfriends. This is the real deal, it is authentic, it is genuine, it is THE HEALING POWER OF GIRLFRIENDS!
