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Good morning,
If this year taught us anything, it’s that women over 50 are done waiting to be invited into the conversation. We’re writing it.
This past year, PROVOKED wrestled with aging and beauty, and Madonna’s face, along with the uncomfortable truth that women are expected to stay forever young while men are congratulated for simply … persisting. We swooned over Pamela Anderson’s transformation and asked the question no one else is asking: Has she finally found love, or has she finally found herself?
We talked about retirement—the promise, the panic, the whisper-fear of becoming “boring,” and whether boredom is really the worst thing that can happen to a woman who has been everything to everyone.
We talked about sex and dating—the unfiltered version—and admitted, with humor and a little sting, that sometimes the problem might … occasionally … be us?
Underneath it all, there was a through-line: agency, curiosity, and the constant negotiation between who we were, who we became, and who we’re still allowed to be.
We’re heading into the new year the same way we lived this one: laughing, loving, and very much still in the middle of our own becoming.
Thank you for reading and for staying curious with me.
Here’s to the year ahead. Happy New Year!
P.S. Next Thursday we’ll be back to our regular format, featuring the stories you love.
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BY SUSAN DABBAR
From a single-writer launch to a 20+ contributor newsroom serving more than 20,000 women, PROVOKED became the magazine we couldn’t find anywhere else. Here’s what we built together and what’s ahead. The next chapter is bolder, braver, and even more committed to telling the truth about life after 50.
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IN YOUR WORDS
Raw, honest, funny, furious, hopeful—you became part of our story this year.
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“I am so tired of being told to stay in my lane, don’t complain, and be grateful for the scraps they (men) give us. I literally had an employer tell me that I need to be ‘grateful’ I have my job at the time and to not think of advancement in the company because they needed me where I was and hired someone so unqualified and all because he’s a man.”
— Dawn on Did Women Ruin the Workplace? No. The Boys’ Club Did.
“Love how clearly this article delineates the challenges for women. For me, it helps to articulate the topics to educate younger generations of women about, and help them proactively push back on these ‘norms’.”
— Robin on What the F: Six F-Words That Prove We’re Not ‘Bitter Old Women’
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“Finally! My emotions in print! So powerful and empowering. Thank you for expressing the truth that so many women are embracing! This made my day! I am not alone!”
— Diane on Feminist Midlife Manifesto
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“Whoa! Thank you for the validation. This has been my saving grace as I find the real me after the storm. YES! Hell, yes … dress with intention! And live with intention!”
— Jan on The Quiet Power of Dressing With Intention
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“That’s what’s so necessary about this magazine, about what you are saying here. No one talks about these things and we feel stuck. I encouraged my husband to go upstate to do some work. He said, ‘I don’t want to go without you.’ I wanted to say, ‘I WANT YOU TO GO WITHOUT ME!’ It’s refreshing to hear that other women feel this way.”
— Susan on My Own Bedroom Was Just the Start: Selfhood and Autonomy Inside Marriage
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“This article came to me at the perfect time. I lost my sister a year ago. She kept my memories better than I ever did, and I miss her so much that I have been stuck in my grief. I am going to commit myself to a life review and see how I feel and where it takes me.”
— Sandy on The Life Review You Didn’t Know You Needed
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“Wow! Thank you for these stories. I related to each and every one. I am in the midst of a friendship breakup now and, thanks to all the tools and support I have, I’m handling it well. Thanks again!”
— Lee on The Friendship Breakups No One Talks About
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FROM MY KITCHEN TO YOURS
Holiday Cranberry Cocktail—PROVOKED Style
Because sometimes the most satisfying thing you can do on New Year’s Eve is pour a beautiful drink, take a breath, and enjoy it. This cranberry-rosemary cocktail is clean, tart, and unfussy—a quiet upgrade to the classic vodka-cranberry, made with cranberry juice and a simple rosemary homemade syrup.
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🔥 THE HOT TAKES THAT GOT YOU TALKING
Our most watched Instagram reels—bold, provocative, and very done with being polite.
🧠 Confidence After 50: It’s not a rerun—it’s a rebuild. A woman who knows her worth and her limits? Dangerous in the best of ways.
🏷️ “So … What Do You Do?”: A terrible question. Triggering, reductive, dated. Flip the script—ask who she is, not what she produces.
🔖 “Retired” Is Not Your Name: Be more than retired. You didn’t live this long to be reduced to your calendar status.
🚶♀️ Walk-Away Power: The most underrated skill after 50? Leaving the table when respect is no longer being served. Thank you, Chappell Roan.
👩🚀 Blue Origin: A Missed Moment for Women: When you finally send women to space—and spotlight the celebrities over the scientists? What a fail.
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Love PROVOKED? Share it with a friend.
One quick click and they’ll thank you (and so will we).
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✍️ Are you a writer? Do people call you opinionated? Got an unapologetic POV? We’re looking for freelancers with a distinct voice.
Pitch Us, We're Ready!
📝 Missed a Thursday drop? No worries. All of our past newsletters are waiting for you right here.
⌨️ Our newsletter and articles are written by Susan and the talented writers of PROVOKED. Get to know the women behind them here.
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