Image by Ana S Epstein, Medium
Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris for President. She added “Childless Cat Lady” to her signature. Inquiring minds want to know what it means.
In social media-land, it apparently means women no longer need to care about men’s opinion of them. At least, not men like Republican VP candidate, J.D. Vance, who said that America was being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.” Childless Cat Ladies the world over laughed and meowed loud and proud.
But it may also signal a tectonic cultural shift – one that’s been a long time coming. And by long time, I mean eons – all the way back to ancient Egypt, and beyond. Take Adam’s first wife, Lilith. When informed she would be less than equal to Adam, she hit the road. Bolted from the Garden of Eden. Replaced by Eve, the good girl.
Then there’s Sekhmet, rage-filled ancient Egyptian goddess of war. With the head of a lioness and the body of a woman, you could call her the ultimate cat lady. And as a “self-creating goddess,” she may well embody Carl Jung’s concept of individuation on a super-powerful divine feminine scale (within all of us, regardless of gender.) In today’s world, where money equals power, Taylor Swift, a self-made billionaire, embodies much the same. “For a woman to use her will and creativity for her own benefit,” says author Normandi Ellis, “is frightening for some men.” Men exactly like J.D. Vance. Meow! Hiss!
Sekhmet also represents potent feminine sexuality, which no doubt scared some of the menfolk back in the day. The Book of Revelation called her the Great Harlot, Mother of Harlots and of Abominations of the Earth. In other words, bad girls.
Ms. Ellis believes that the rage of Sekhmet is a form of “thwarted energy…. Because women are taught to repress anger and turn it inwards, it builds up – and eventually, that energy must be released.” Rawrrrr! “Sekhmet is transformative power, and we can use her energy in a positive way by learning how to release and express it appropriately.” Like at the ballot box. Like, on November 5, 2024, we can join Tay-Tay in voting for Kamala.
For us elders of the tribe, “Sekhmet as the crone rules menopause,” says Ellis. Which is “a powerful time of self-creation and self-government that could produce visions and create magic.”
Check out Cynthia’s badass website: www.mywayisthehighway.com
