The Haves and Have-Nots.

As I listened to SF recall her small talk with the only male from the client's side (simply because the other women did not deign to include her in their small talk after the meeting), I was already visualising the characteristic lively expressions, the easy conversation, and the charm she exudes while holding her Court, the way only she can.

Then, the animosity from the women, which unsettled her greatly: "Why do they dislike me??? What did I do?"

"Because you scare them. They are threatened by your charm."

Surely, she was hardly competition beside these much better looking women - she thought. I beg to differ.

Because, really, it is how effortlessly you exude charm and confidence, as if they were part of your being. Whereas these women - attractive, younger and well-dressed - just do not have it. These women know this. They know that charm and confidence cannot be bought off the shelf. They also know that beauty and youth, while not easily acquired (though increasingly possible with medical technology), are simply cold perfections without the fire of that special something that comes from within you. You have it. They do not. And they know this.

Or perhaps, it was just a territory thing. Females mark their spot too - and she was an outsider.

Ah, how often our kind scrutinise and assess each other, sometimes more than the men do :-) Not only the other women colleagues/ acquaintances of our boyfriends/ husbands; and yes, even our friends - "I wonder who else he hangs out with. How come he doesn't ask me to accompany him to that CD shop he likes so much?" And, especially, our romantic interests - competition. Not a pleasant feeling, but to be expected - natural, if not allowed to become an unhealthy obsession. A matter of self-confidence? Possessive nature? Or just marking territory? Perhaps, a combination.

But what does it mean when the usual questions you burn to ask, and the things you want to know, of the other women of a romantic interest, do not come as expected, nor even matter to you?

I need.

To sleep my fears away. And then, find Courage.