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Your Place in the World

My Dear Julieta,

I really hope that when it is time for you to have a job, things have changed for the better. It is very tough to be a woman, standing your ground and fighting for what you believe in. Other women around me are constantly second-guessing themselves, questioning their leadership skills, their knowledge, and intelligence before even questioning the person that is doubting them, to begin with. It is our nature to assume, or better yet, this thing inside our heads that we have been raised to believe in; that everything is our fault, that there must be something wrong with what we are doing, and that we have to correct ourselves. Men don't think that way as a rule; they question their managers or leaders before assigning blame on themselves, and there must be at least the same amount of intelligent women like intelligent men. They just don't go to this dark place that often. We constantly wonder if we are making good choices. If the decisions we are making today may affect our children tomorrow, we feel guilt and pain sacrificing our personal life to advance in our professional life. If we are warm and gentle, we are labeled soft; if we are tough, we are bitches; no assertiveness is included in the statement; it is always a character flaw. 
I hope you grow up to be a confident, intelligent woman that doesn't put up with other people's crap and baggage. I hope you find strength in your womanhood and use these attributes to make you better at your job and not as excuses to justify your shortcomings. Nowadays, women in the workforce are not considered temperamental; they are hysterical, not assertive, vindictive and hateful, are not professional, and are ruthless.
I wish you to see the value of a stay-at-home-mom just as much as the value of the new CEO of a multinational corporation. We choose differently, and there are no rights or wrongs; they are all choices, and we should be happy with our choices as long as they empower us.
Yes, apparently, all of those things can make you think I am a feminist, and you are right. I believe in women, belief in the sisterhood, and in helping other women succeed in a man's world. I believe we are different but not better than men.
My mom told me the other night that when I was a little girl, I reflected on our differences. She said that I was concerned when my grandpa took me to see a big nativity set that they were displayed outside a church due to Christmas. She said I asked my grandpa why Jesus Christ was a baby boy and not a baby girl and that at the moment, I understood and said that boys think they are better than us. My mom is a feminist, but she doesn't know it; my grandma is a feminist too, but she is too conservative to admit that it describes her. They are strong women, full of ideas, and able to carry themselves and support themselves thru difficult times. These women that I grew up with, they think, they like to read, to contemplate a painting, to go see a play, to discuss politics, they are not just there, sitting pretty, acting as furniture.
Julieta, one day you will find your own voice, and I would hopefully have raised you to go against the tide, fight, make changes in the world, and embrace everything that being a woman means.
 

Comments

  1. antiquisimaOctober 3, 2014 at 3:47 PM

    Good luck in this endeavour, my dear Malu. Greetings from Denmark. Enjoy the opportunity to be Julieta's mom. Alejandra Z.

    ReplyDelete
  2. MaluOctober 3, 2014 at 3:51 PM

    Gracias Ale, saludos desde Calgary.

    ReplyDelete

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