International Women’s Day celebrated with generational gathering in Manjimup

To help celebrate International Women’s Day, Manjimup’s Stellar Violets hosted a gathering of women from all backgrounds to share their stories and experiences of what it means to be a woman in the modern era. The day involved the women present going into the garden and collecting flowers and and other items to create a mandala, which pointed north, south, east and west. The women then began with, what co-organiser Vive Oldham said, was a “beautiful conversation” between the group of their collective experiences and how important it was to support their fellow women in the future. “It is so important to be having those kinds of conversations right now with all that is going on in the country,” she said. “The gathering around was there for women to share in a safe and common space and that was the intention of the morning. “The morning was pretty simple but pretty powerful.” Ms Oldham said she would “love” to host similar events in the future which would allow more women from the community to come forward and share their stories in a safe environment. “We would love to build programs for women, girls, mothers, daughters,” she said. “Where they spend time on country and can create more of connection with the land they are living on and that is the work we are building on.” Ms Oldham said the beauty of a talk like this was it allowed women to “plant seeds” of development for the future.