"Reunion

“So, what have you been doing for the last forty years?”

I’ve been daughter and son, spouse, parent, and grandparent

I’ve been married to my best friend

I’ve been single

I’ve been divorced

I’ve been widowed

I’ve been builder, nurse, mechanic, educator and designer

I’ve been firefighter, soldier and homemaker

I’ve been  caregiver, dancer and artist

I’ve been writer, lawyer and singer

I’ve been traveling and planting roots

I’ve been in my family home and living abroad

I’ve been loved 

I’ve been alone

I’ve been stubborn and caring

I’ve been angry, hurt, lost and regretful

I’ve been generous, open-minded, and loving

I’ve been surviving heartbreaks

I’ve been wallowing in happiness

I’ve been living my life

“What about you?”

Copyright 2016 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman

“Free at Last!”

  This summer, I trashed the constraints of my bras. I cast aside straps and snaps. I threw away underwire and extra support. Instead of breaking my budget on undergarments I resent, I purchased soft chamois, seamless sports bras, and colorful t-shirts that snug against my skin. I triumphantly enjoy my liberation. After pulling a twelve hour day, I no longer run home to strip out of my bra and into something comfortable.

  When I confided to one friend my new found freedom, she gasped, “Why would you stop wearing a bra! Isn’t that bad for you?” And although I told her about all of the research I’d done; and that society plays more of a role in our undergarments than physical necessity, she simply shook her head and stated that she’d never go anywhere public without being held “firmly in place.” 

  I’ve waited for someone to run after me, pointing and crying wildly, “Hey, Lady, where’s your bra?” but my modest t-shirts or cute chamois under my blouses and tops fill the bill. 

Copyright 2016 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman