Who is she?
Lola
“To be a woman is to keep this capacity to take care of the other, this capacity to be tender while daring to take up challenges”.
Who is she?
If I was a season, I would be spring
If I was a flower, I would be the cyclamen
If I was a food/meal, I would be chocolate with fleur de sel
If I was a motto, I would be “Don’t follow me, I’m lost”
If I was a smell, I would be the smell after the rain
If I was a city, I would be Brussels
If I was an animal, I would be a field mouse
- Interview
Question 1:
What does it mean to you to be a woman?
For me, being a woman means living with a kind of paradox. There is at the same time something sweet in the fact of being a woman, something tender, and at the same time, strength, but also pain! Men don’t have that, but we have this possible pain every month; if we decide to have children… it’s strange the place that pain comes to take in the life of the woman while at the same time, there is all this care and sweetness. I also think that for me, the paradox of being a woman is to have the impression of being everywhere and nowhere at the same time… It’s strange what I’m going to tell you, but for example, when you look at the museums, women are represented everywhere, but when you look at the artists, there are very few… Women’s bodies are enormously discussed in politics, but at the level of the decisions, women are very little there (laughs) Things are changing, but in my life, as a woman, I find that there is a lot of paradox; opposites that must be held together…
Otherwise, being a woman is also, I think, having a different relationship to the body than men. There is a cycle in our body that is very present and at the same time very abstract. With this relationship to the body, there is also a relationship to nature, because of the fact of having this cycle… This cycle in us represents, for many the cycle of the seasons… In life also in a general way, it is as if we had several seasons… And thus, a nearness… I feel, as a woman, very close to nature, there is something a little bit magic in that.
Question 2:
What does nutrition mean to you and what role does it play in your life?
I found out this past weekend that my future husband was accepted to Florence for a Ph.D., so after the wedding, we are moving to Florence for 4 years! So yes, I think this big change, getting married after 8 years of being a couple, is my plan for this year. The organization and the joy of being able to gather a lot of important people in my life and give them a role, I find very beautiful! And at the same time, this move to Florence, which has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl, and now the concreteness of the dream is a little bit scary because my life is going to change… I knew there would be a change, but now it’s the concreteness of the change that is great, hyper exciting, and at the same time, terrifying! It’s always the coolest thing that gives you those feelings! So, yes, this is for the private life, these are big projects!
And if not, professionally, I’m going to give my very first public speaking and storytelling training! I feel the same way, both very excited because it’s great and a great opportunity, and at the same time it’s scary (laughs). So, there you go, again a paradox (laughs). Things that are very nice but scary… But in the end, it’s more nice than scary of course. In these 3 projects, which are for me very linked, I find the fact of daring to take a step and to dare to do something… I must say that for that I have a very good entourage and an exceptional lover too!
Question 3:
If you had to pass on one piece of knowledge and/or advice to other women, what would it be?
I would say that I don’t think that this tenderness within us is innate; I think it’s something that we learn as women. Sometimes today’s society wants to give more space to women, but it’s like it’s become a weakness when to me, everyone should be educated like that. And so, it’s finding the balance, keeping this capacity to take care of the other, this capacity to be tender while daring to take up challenges for which we would say “oh I don’t have the capacities”. You must be able to not underestimate yourself, to take the place you need to take, and at the same time not lose the ability to take care of the other person and to be gentle. It’s not a weakness and it doesn’t mean that we must give up this gentleness to reach our goals. So, there you have it, for me, it’s about successfully balancing the 2… To go… to take up the space… and at the same time keep that strength and gentleness… Find a way to combine the two; it’s not about opposites! It’s AND! I am strong AND gentle!