The stories of women’s lives that i have gathered here range over much of the time and geography of these events. In finding and distilling them, i am moved by an urgent sense that in order to invent new strategies and ways of living together, in order to find those paths that lead to the continuation of life on earth, we must come to understand the nature of these blows: how and why they fell, what was lost, what was hidden away and saved, and most of all, what we, the majority of humans, have learned from the long process of resisting, surrendering, accommodating, and transforming ourselves so that we could live. In these stories, I am seeking information on how to tip the balance toward survival for all of us.