The Power of Kinship

At the Summer Solstice, I received the message from the land and the fire that this coming cycle is about kinship and support.  It was interesting to me that the term "kinship" was used, not the term "friendship".  Which made me think about how this applies to the Child-free community.

Kinship is an even deeper bond than friendship. There is something "family" about it. Where similar jokes, perspectives, life position all play a part, even if there is diversity in lives and lifestyles amongst us.  It's like a sisterhood, which will include varying voices, preferences and relationships, but at the core a connection that is beyond time.

Throughout history, child-free women have walked a lonely path. We have either been scapegoated, deemed invisible or pitied by the family-dominated world.  Society hasn't seen a necessity for us to gather and share, and so many of us just walk an independent path even believing that we don't have needs for support.  Which is absolutely insane because everyone needs support.  In fact, studies have shown that the most successful people in life are those that have a strong community.

This is why I wanted to create social gatherings and retreats for Child-free Women. We need space to laugh, joke, release emotions, share our stories and have compassion for the difficulties of living in a world that pressures us to love babies and have them.  We need a space to affirm and claim for ourselves that we have different dreams and goals than mothers do and a lifestyle that meets our needs and unique path.  We are meant to live closer to our truth, of what is really in our hearts, not out of social obligation. But it's hard to do that and keep the strength and courage alive when there aren't others who give us feedback.  


If you would like to connect to more child-free kin, I'd suggest the following:

1) Join the Persephone's Heart Society -- a free online community

2) Come to a Meetup.com event in Peterborough, Toronto or Guelph if you live in those areas

3) Come to a Retreat for Child-free Women