Picture Sex and the City stars in their last movie. Beautiful, sassy and fierce women in their 40s.

Today’s middle class Filipino women in their 40s have a solid career with a good number already in senior management or executive positions. If not single or separated, they are married with kids who are either teenagers or young adults. They have amazing friends who are usually of the same age who prefer to invite each other at home for a night of good food and lots of laughter.

Does life really begin at 40 for middle class women who seem to have it all? Do they still aspire for something?

The answer is yes. Here are the TOP FIVE dreams, hopes, and aspirations of middle class women in their 40s.

1. To pursue a life of purpose

This may sound cliché, but these are women who have already reached the pinnacle of their careers. Having worked for more than 20 years and endured physical, mental, and emotional stress at work, they now look forward to a more peaceful life.

Roselle is a Controller of one of the biggest insurance firms in the country today. Having accomplished much in her career, she is now pursuing her personal interest – arts and crafts. She has been devoting her time to hone her skills in this area and perhaps, start a small business on it.

Chelo was a corporate executive when she retired at 42 to focus on her daughter who is now homeschooled. With more free time, she has discovered new hobbies and even volunteered in church activities. She is now experimenting on being an entrepreneur and travelling to explore new places.

Marissa who works in a bank wants to be part of a charitable institution, a medical mission or do church service. Angel wants to do community projects like giving school supplies and volunteer in animal shelters. At a professional level, Angel wants to join a donor organization so she can influence what programs and organizations to fund.

2. To instill values among the young generation

Mothers of this age can already see if their kids have internalized the values instilled in them. Marissa reinforced to her three boys the value of hard work and being responsible for all their decisions. She always stressed the importance of gratefulness and to always retain love and respect among siblings.

Roselle stressed to her daughters the values of education, generosity, and serving others. Emma’s kids were taught to follow the Ten Commandments and observe the Golden Rule: Do unto others what you want others do unto you.

Chelo teaches her daughter the values of homeschooling that parents are primarily responsible for their child’s character and learning is only secondary. Their family culture is anchored on the father as primary provider while the mother manages the household. They serve the church and spend time helping people.

3. To live the dreams of family members

Strengthened family relationships is a common goal among middle class women in their 40s. Those with kids hope that they graduate from college and have a productive career.

With more time and money to spare since some of their kids will graduate from the university soon, many would like to do frequent family travels here and abroad.

For those who lead a life of single blessedness like Angel, her two dogs is part of her family and wishes for them to be happy at all times.

4. To prepare for retirement

With usual retirement at 60, it is natural that women in their 40s are already preparing for it.

All of these women are aspiring to have a second home, whether for them or their children. Emma is definite that she wants to invest in real estate before she retires in three years when she reaches 50. Marissa also wants to buy a farm in Tagaytay and build an apartment for additional income after retirement.

Chelo wants to buy a house that she can pass on to her daughter when she turns 20 or 30. She gained much from her stock trading activities when she was single so she plans to go back to it along with other aggressive investment opportunities to prepare for retirement.

Roselle wants to invest in a small business in arts and crafts while continuing passive investments like mutual funds and equities.

Angel wants to have a small bungalow in a farm where her dogs can run free.

5. To stay sane and healthy during the pandemic

Angel has limited her time watching news and scrolling social media to keep herself positive. She exercises daily and has dabbled on some hobbies like finishing 1,000 pieces of a puzzle and some coloring books. She plays around a lot with her pets and orders delicious food from time to time.

Marissa limits eating sweets and fats and has been taking multivitamins lately. She is conscious to exercise at least 2-3 times a week. Even on a work from home setup, she makes sure that she takes a one hour lunch break and as much as possible, closes her laptop at 5:00pm. She prays the rosary at 6:00pm and makes sure she sleeps for 6-7 hours.

Chelo wants to have a sustainable healthy lifestyle for her family so she has a small vegetable garden. Netflix is a de-stressor but she tries hard not to eat mindlessly while watching K-dramas. She also reads a lot during spare time and exercises with her daughter.

Roselle has started doing journals of how she feels in prayer form, more like a conversation with God to allay her fears and worries and share her small victories.

A woman in her 40s may not have the same physical energy and attributes of a woman in her 20s but she has the confidence, experience, and grace that makes 40s the new 30s.