When I was growing up, I was awed by independent women who conducted their lives with confidence.

These women never cared about what people said and some referred to them as the crème of the crop because of their mastery at carving a name for themselves as autonomous. They made their own decisions.

I admired women who drove to work.

I admired women who dressed to kill.

I admired beautiful women who had their faces made up and who wore stilettos.

I admired women most of all who had a presence. Have you ever met someone whom you admired instantly?

They are often people who tend to represent perfection in your eyes. Just being around them created an aura of respectability, and it drives you to be the same.

I thought to emulate these women when I grew up. They had made an indelible mark on me.

There were two women whom I admired very much. They spoke well and had a dignified presence about them.

They were strong women, who rose up in their chosen professions with grit and perseverance. They had great families and earned a sizeable income each month to afford the luxuries of life. In short, they had everything going for them.

One day, I heard that one of them had depression and had deteriorated in stature and well-being. The other one had left the country after a messy divorce.

These were women I chose to emulate when young.

I ran into the depressed individual some time ago and she looked sick and stared at me blankly. I knew that she didn't recognize me.

I wasn't sure if I should stop to talk to her, so I passed her without saying anything.

I could only think that once she had it all together and had the world at her feet.

I did feel bad that I missed the opportunity to speak to her. But, she looked at me like I was a stranger. Hence, I found it difficult to talk to her.

That lady was beautiful once, and now, her beauty was marred and she had shrunk in size. Possibly due to her illness.

I felt sad and wondered if I would ever see her again.

It seemed now to me that life had been unkind to her in some way. I wondered what happened to the strength and success of her youth.

The events that had collided with her life had changed her into someone different than the one I knew before.

It takes a lot to be strong throughout your life. Life has its shortcomings, and only when you can handle them in a proper perspective, will you understand what strength is that lies beneath a false demeanor.

Have you ever thought about it this way? Let me know in the comment section.

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