At 58, Melissa Gilbert Says Women Over 50 Are ‘More Than Just Sweet Old Ladies’
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Melissa Gilbert, 58, shares how she hopes to empower women over 50.
“We know they are and can be more than just sweet old ladies,” she said. “We’re so much richer and have so many more accomplishments and have earned our right to our opinion.”
Her hub for older women, Modern Prairie, aims to shift perspective on aging.
The race for perpetual youthfulness is one that—spoiler alert—doesn’t have a finish line, which is why Melissa Gilbert is more concerned with the journey. She knows that aging is inevitable, no matter how many creams, serums, or injectables you try, so she pivoted her thinking. Instead, she welcomes women her age to join her in a new group effort that redefines getting older and challenges society’s thoughts on time.
“You know, we are pigeonholed into two things. We’re either doddering, sweet old ladies or that horrible old shrew, stay away from her,” the former Little House on the Prairie star, 58, recently told CNN. “And there’s so much more, we’re so much richer and have so many more accomplishments and have earned our right to our opinion.”
She genuinely wants women over 50 to know that they are worth not only celebrating, but investing in, which she invites people to do via her online community and women-owned small business hub, Modern Prairie.
“We want women over 50 to know that we see and hear them and they are not alone. They are important. The journeys their lives have taken are meaningful and we want to give them a space to value that,” she explained. “We know they are and can be more than just sweet old ladies. We want them to know that Modern Prairie is a community where they can share their triumphs, difficulties, transitions, and talents.”
Modern Prairie is also a place where women are invited to bond over highs and lows, “Whether it’s transitioning into a new job, or children leaving the nest, or the hormonal changes our bodies are going through and the grief that comes with all of those things,” she said. “We wanted to create a place where women could talk to other women about it.”
Gilbert’s latest update on the site honors March as International Friendship Month and encourages readers to put themselves out there for connection, even when it’s hard. “Making new friends isn’t always easy. It takes time, effort, and vulnerability,” she wrote. “It’s important to be patient and kind to yourself throughout the process.” Modern Prairie’s events page is full of offerings for said connection, too, from flower arrangement classes to inspirational lectures.
They might seem trivial, the gatherings and mantras, but they all fall under the larger, crucial reminder that Gilbert gives herself (and others) regularly.
“I lived so much of my life being what other people want me to be,” she previously told Prevention. “The quote that pops into my head daily: ‘It’s none of my business what other people think of me.’ It’s just not healthy.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves.
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