I read an article this morning which had the same title. It was based on the role of the mother in today's world and if a working woman should stay back at home when she is blessed with a kid. It is very controversial and challenging - yet, worth the discussion!
It is traditional mostly in South Asian context for women to be the house wife and be the person to raise children. This has been the case ever since human existence. Man has always been the bread winner and is considered the person responsible to provide for the family. Life was much simpler, easier, direct, primitive and affordable. Education was limited to the wealthy and the rest depended on cultivation.
Since then the world has taken its turns and here we are today in a globalized, modernized society where equal rights, gender equalization, global opportunities, career orientation, financial independence have become common and widely discussed. Women have stepped up from being house wives to being business women and have started equally contributing towards the family. Independent women who have individual goals and careers are seen widely.
Just like every other human being, a woman has a right to live the life as an individual despite the role she has to play in life. It is a great deed to be a mother - something unique, every woman's dream ( of course most women do still dream ). But I see it just as another part of a woman's life. Just like we become daughters, sisters at some point, we give birth to another human being and we become mothers. Just like every man becomes a son, brother and a father. The arguments of women having to choose between motherhood and professional life, in my opinion is as if someone is arguing that a girl cannot be a student in school because she is a daughter or a sister.
There are still concerns over if women could handle these together. If they become successful in both roles. I was brought up by almost single handed by my mother along with two sisters with a full time career. It sure was a challenge given the obstacles two decades back but she still did it. She did not have the best of education qualifications or the best of living conditions but still she managed to bring up three daughters as responsible citizens to the world. And she is not the only one. There are millions of mothers who do the same. Who manages to bring up kids while working and yet ensure they do all what is necessary for the kids too as a mother.
I challenge anyone to show a difference between a kid brought up by a working mother and a full time mother. I would bet, you cannot distinguish unless otherwise other external factors have had some effect.
I think the more you see the world as a mother, the more you can prepare your child for what lies ahead for them in the world. I think there is a beauty in the strength of a woman who can balance her life between all this and yet be a loving wife, a mother and a professional.
Marissa Mayer - CEO Yahoo, Indra Nooyi - CEO Pepsico, Irene Rosenfeld - CEO Kraft Foods, Michelle Obama , Otara Gunewardena - CEO Odel, Maria Das Gracas Silva - CEO Petrobas are few of those great mothers and professionals who proved the world that the best of both worlds can exist and it is possible.
We all need help sometimes. We need people to believe in us - at work, at home, in the society. we become weak just like every other human being. That does not mean we are weaker or we cannot handle the responsibilities or that we need to make a choice between motherhood and professions. It just means that we would need a little help from rest of you around us to get back on track.
As a woman, I believe in having freedom to make choices about life. I think the respect from the rest of the society on the decisions women make would be one of the greatest tributes anyone can pay for a woman. And if she chooses to be independent, chase her own dreams and still play the role she wants to play in a family, let her take the challenge. May be she will make you proud too !
Choice is all that is required!!
It is our choices, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities - J.K Rowling. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
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