Exult: A Woman in 2010

As the season of revelations and resolutions approaches, I find myself contemplating where I am and where I want to go.

As I look at the past year, I see the ups and downs I’ve been through.  I recognize the happiness the good times gave me and the lessons and strength the bad brought.  I am thankful for both.

This New Years, I find most of the improvements I hope for in 2010 involve health and fitness.  Because of that, when I start this column back up after winter break, I’ll reveal the results of the month long experiment I mentioned and cover some women’s exercise and health topics.

On a deeper level than personal fitness though, I find myself contemplating the woman I am becoming and what kind of a woman I want to be.

What does it take to be a strong, yet elegant woman in 2010?  It is a tough balancing act that I think will prove a challenge to maintain well.  How do we appear elegant without seeming like we have no backbone?  How do we appear strong without coming across as unpolished or too brash?

I don’t know the answers yet, but I feel like my experiences thus far in college are pushing me in the right direction, and I need to stay focused to stay on track.

As Clare Boothe Luce, an American diplomat and playwright, said, “Because I am a woman, I must make unusual efforts to succeed.  If I fail, no one will say, ‘She doesn’t have what it takes.’  They will say, ‘Women don’t have what it takes.’”

Sadly, there are still people who maintain that sort of attitude about women.  It is our responsibility to be the best women we can be so we can continue to crush stereotypes against our sex.

No matter what you face in 2010, I hope you’ll devote some deep thought to what kind of woman you are becoming and you’d like to be.  There’s never a better time to start thinking about the future than the present.

Ashley Bene is a junior majoring in magazines at the University of Georgia.  She hopes everyone has a safe and happy winter break!