In total control

I looked out at the room [for a talk] full of strangers with anxiety. Then I thought of my consciousness-raising group, and suddenly I saw a room-full of warm and interested women, women who had come out on a dark night to hear me—to hear what I had to say. And I reached out to them, addressing each woman individually. I revealed myself to them, and for the first time in my life I was able to say what I thought, what I felt, without fear of judgment, in total control. I held the eye of one, then another as I spoke, sharing very personal things about my own work and life with these women who were eager to know me. Vera Klement