Joyful Sisterhood - Katerina & Jo
Katerina about JoI knew of Jo and would often see her around Universal Medicine events always smiling and very warm and friendly looking, but I didn’t actually personally meet her until one day I ventured into her women’s boutique that she used to own in the Northern Rivers. I was on my way to getting a tattoo lasered and removed in the clinic next door (that’s another story) and I had a few minutes to spare. I was drawn by the yummy delights I could see in the shop; delectable candles, lip glosses and delightful colours everywhere. Jo was at the counter and she greeted me with the warm smile I would always associate her with – and her warmth and welcoming melted away some of my shyness and trepidation in initiating getting to know each other more.
You see, back then, I didn’t really have much trust in my relationships with women. I had been hurt in the past, with friendships going sour and women (or young girls for that matter) turning on each other. But the moment I stepped into Jo’s shop I felt something very different – I felt I was being held and celebrated by another woman in a way that I had never let myself feel before.
How often do you actually walk into a women’s shop and feel totally and utterly celebrated for who you actually, and naturally are? |
Jo about Katerina I first met Katerina in the little boutique I owned and instantly felt our connection. She is super gorgeous and has a flair for dressing that totally reflects the woman she is. She adored exploring every corner of my store and her delight in finding little pieces that she loved was contagious and very confirming for me as the buyer!
A little while later the opportunity came up to move into the amazing house where she was living in the Northern Rivers – we both said a big yes! (Oh my goodness the clothes, jewellery and accessories combined!!)
While living together, our relationship developed into the most intimate and loving expression of how two women can truly be with each other. We laughed, we cried, we sang, we cooked and we cuddled - but more so, we deeply supported each other, never letting ‘stuff’ get in the way of bringing true love, openness, intimacy and transparency to our friendship. If a problem arose, we brought it to the table and with commitment to completely sort it out from both of us. We worked together to build a strong and loving foundation and developed a gorgeous and precious friendship.
|
|
This is one of the many things I deeply cherish about Jo and the amazing friendship we developed. In today’s world, as a result of the lack of self-worth that plagues so many women, a connection with another woman that is void of any comparison or jealousy is rare.
This is what you get with Jo: the invitation to shine, shine and shine even more. Jo has an incredible depth and love for women being all they truly are, and she will celebrate you in all of your true beauty to the hilt. Which is why I fell so much in love with Jo’s shop – it was an extension of Jo’s essence in delicious and magnificent form! |
I learned that commitment to making every interaction about love allows relationships to truly deepen and evolve and that there is no ceiling to how much love you can bring to each other when committed in this way. I experienced a sweet delicateness and a vulnerability from Katerina and she helped me to understand that how we speak to another can be hurtful, even if it is just in our tone and delivery.
If I said something in any way that was not loving or honouring of her, or myself for that matter, just looking at her gorgeous face with her eyes welling up with tears melted my heart and helped me so much to be loving in my every expression. |
|
One day, at a Universal Medicine event, I saw Jo sitting down and there was a seat next to her. I claimed the seat and we started talking. Jo was about to move out of the house she was in and she wasn’t sure what the next step was, and where she was going to live. And then all of a sudden, pretty much at the same time, we both said “I want to live with you!”
Jo & I lived together for 9 months, a period of time that heralded enormous change for both of us. During these times, that were certainly challenging, we supported each other in ways that were so familiar and natural but that I had forgotten women can actually do for each other. We were sisters, the best of friends, the closest of family, and this opened me up more and more to letting other women into my life just as much.
I now live interstate but every time I go back up to the Northern Rivers to visit Jo it’s like we’re living together again. We laugh, we cry, anoint ourselves with delicious face-masks and foot-spas and inspire each other always to be more of the powerful women we truly are. When things get in the way, when past hurts stick their little thorns up, we support each other to come back to the love we are and the amazing love we have with and for each other.
This love is by no means exclusive just to us. I know that for both Jo and myself, all our other relationships have been enriched by the love we have for each other. We’ve set our own benchmark, a benchmark that’s forever evolving just as we are.
When women truly let each other in, when comparison and jealousy is replaced by celebration and inspiration, we don’t just hold each other, we hold the entire world The natural nurturing and loving qualities every woman has, are magnified many times over, and that melting away of the past hurts and wounds that we all carry, is not experienced by one person. It can be experienced by all of us, by entire communities – as we remember that this is exactly how we are ALL meant to be with each other.
|
Our daily connection deepened my understanding that truly, we can express everything we feel with love, and we can develop ourselves to do this with every interaction Katerina is joyful, playful, wise and powerful. Just by looking at her you can feel the care she takes with herself, down to every detail, reflecting to all women that we are worth this deep care and love for ourselves.
I treasure Katerina, I honour what we have, and through our friendship I have discovered more deeply what women can truly bring to each other when we let go of comparison and embrace the love that we are. Together we live Sisterhood.
|