A friend texts me every year on international women's day. This year I replied that I wasn't really marking it, tho I was taking my wonderful young woman to look around a college, and so supporting her as she makes her next educational choices. And I was, as always, supporting women to trust that their bodies which throughout pregnancy have amazingly grown an entire human being, will continue to provide all that the baby needs for the following 6 months too.
This year's theme, "be bold for change" is about celebrating the achievement of women in various arenas and creating a better working world. I'm not today in a celebratory mood and instead of feeling bold I've actually retreated. But striving for change can be done any day of the year. Tomorrow it's my intention to get out on the front line and put my body where my thoughts are in terms of local decisions being ridden roughshod over by far removed politicians. More on that tomorrow.
Meanwhile none of us know what it is to live like anyone else. Like any privileged group, those who are not women have a long way to go in trying to understand what it is like to live without that privilege. Today I would like to feel proud that I manage to support my family on my limited income. I know that I am proud of modeling to my children that it is good to live life meaningfully, that my goal is to bring about positive change and offer support and encouragement rather than to amass wealth. Maybe my children will have different goals such as to become rich, their goals will be theirs, but I have shown that it's possible to spend our lives doing what we think we should do, not what capitalism tells us we should do. And yet if gender parity existed, I would not have had to choose making a difference over wealth. Why should it be that the roles most frequently occupied by women - healthcare assistants, teaching assistants, nursery workers etc - vital jobs that have our communities survive - are low paid?
There is much still to do. Let's keep doing it.
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