There's more to writing in a woman's voice than imitating the footnotes and intellectualism of academic men. There is more to writing in a woman's voice than following the path of political correctness. What I learned this past weekend meeting with three other strong women, all completely different from me and from one another, is that we are all individual souls yearning for comprehension of this astonishing world and yearning for expression of what we have learned so far. Much of this has to do with love in one or more of its myriad facets.

Happy eve of the second half of 2016. May it bring you strength and authenticity. Oh, yes, and tenderness.