Women of every age, color, and background are invited to step into The Global Red Circle – Standing in Truth, Unleashing Our Most Powerful Selves, an anthology of personal, compelling, and life-affirming letters written to – and by – the women of the world.
The goal? To take the noble and necessary first step towards creating a global circle in which women freely share their wisdom, offer genuine support to one another, and take ultimate responsibility for how they express themselves in this world.
The letters that make up this anthology delve into themes that radiate throughout the lives of every woman. Sisterhood. Grace. Grief. Wholeness. Self-Acceptance. Courage. Possibilities. The dynamic women who explore these topics demonstrate that, deep within, no matter their circumstances, women are truly more alike than different.
Most of the letters in this book contain stories that have never before been told. At the author’s request, the contributors have opened their hearts and bared their souls. They now stand in their truth – for themselves and for the women of the world.
Step into The Global Red Circle.
[1] Shelley E. Taylor, et. al., Behavioral Responses to Stress in Females: Tend and Befriend, Not Fight-or Flight, Psychological Review 2000, Vol. 7, No. 3, 411-429
Origins of The Red Circle Book:
This book has been a long time in the making. Ten years, to be exact, from concept to completion. Looking back, I realize that finding contributors, compiling letters, and putting it all together could probably have been done much faster, but crafting The Global Red Circle was about so much more than creating the actual pages. It was about me evolving into the woman I was always destined to be. As a friend told me recently, “This book wrote you, Kim!”
Throughout this journey, I have confronted my fears, feelings of unworthiness, misgivings about my gifts, and ultimately my reason for living. I’ve cried, grieved, ranted, raved, gnashed my teeth, and torn my garments in classic biblical fashion. For the first two years, on a daily basis, I asked the Creator, “Are you sure you were talking to me?”
Publishing a book is not something I ever thought I would do and certainly wouldn’t have chosen at the height of my “I am not worthy” phase in life. When the idea came to me during meditation one morning, I really thought my spiritual antennae were on crooked and that I’d accidentally intercepted divine inspiration meant for some other woman.
“You want me to write a book? Start a women’s movement? Begin a global conversation about sharing our wisdom and taking responsibility for our own unique expressions of womanhood? I am not that woman.”
But the idea would not leave me, and I am grateful. Now I can say from the deepest part of my heart, “I am that woman!”
At age fifty-four, I am just now finding my true self and letting her out to play. The trunks full of baggage that I carried around for so many years due to being sexually abused as a child have been purged down to one small tote bag. I’ve left behind feeling dirty, used, and unworthy of love. I’ve cast aside the pursuit of perfection and approval. I’ve overcome my fear of making mistakes.
But before reaching this level of emotional and spiritual healing, I walked away from many opportunities, afraid of new adventures and unable to see in myself the potential others saw in me. I could talk a good game, but when it was time for action, I headed in the other direction. It never occurred to me that I had what it takes to accomplish big things, live a life of greatness, or be someone people admire, seek guidance from, and want to emulate.
As a result, my dreams languished and festered in my soul. I forgot about or threw many of them away because they seemed silly and inappropriate for someone so small and unremarkable. I still get a lump in my throat thinking about it now.
Nonetheless, the calling that whispered to my soul that fateful morning would not be silenced. I crawled my way up that mountain of transcendence until I could stand and walk. I read self-help books. I prayed and meditated daily. I kept my eye on women who were unsuspecting mentors and made mental notes of the driving forces of success in their lives.
Throughout this ongoing process of discovery, I uncovered and revived aspects of myself that I’d long buried and neglected. At times, when the journey seemed too challenging, I was slapped back into submission (with my consent, of course) for days, weeks, or months. I would sink back into my “real job” and get back to what I believed normal people did with their lives while scolding myself for thinking I was something other than mediocre.
This journey entailed more fits and starts than I care to recount, but through it all, my friends kept telling me I could do it. They listened to me my stories about why I couldn’t move forward and then loved and encouraged me to do so anyway.
Gradually, the part of me that had been broken and silenced grew into a courageous champion, and time and again I got back to climbing. It was on the path that I found my strength, became acquainted with who I really am, and shrugged off the burdens I no longer wanted to carry. Now I am traveling light and standing tall in my truth. The Global Red Circle was born.
