Hello everyone and and a very good day to you!
March 8th is International Women’s Day, today we take a moment to revere and appreciate women. Let’s talk about some of the reasons why women deserve this day.
Giving Birth
Really, women deserve this appreciation if for no other reason than the fact that everyone who has the capability of reading these words was brought into the world by a mother.
Your mother gave you the gift of breath, seeing sunrises/sunsets, and the opportunity to cross the paths of all your cherished friends. Without mothers, there would be no us.
They gave us one of the greatest gifts, and not only that, they sacrificed themselves in order for you to have it.
Fluctuating hormones, heartburn, back pain, odd hunger cravings, hard to sleep, constipation, no deli meat/wine/sushi/caffeine— those just being a handful of inconveniences within the first 9 months. Not to mention the actual birth process (the vagina takes 12 weeks to a year to go back to normal and some things may never be 100% again) and dealing with you as a kid;you may have been a good kid, but raising one is in-and-of-itself a great challenge, obligation, and responsibility. Have you ever thought about how much time and mental/physical energy she had to give of herself?
Their Strength
They can handle it all though, because they are strong. Women can handle anything and everything. Women are one of the backbones of society, women step up when something is not right. You cannot break the spirit of a woman.
There’s a reason we used Rosie the Riveter as a cultural icon during WWII.
They’re strong mentally AND physically when they need to be, you ever heard of the strength of the mother when her child is in danger?
Their Intelligence
Women are SO intelligent. So many women have contributed to the greater good of the world. Let’s recap a few of them.
Sarah E. Goode, Inventor of the fold out bed and believed to be the first African American to earn a patent.
Melitta Bentz, Inventor of modern coffee brewing; the world runs on Dunkin’? No the world runs because of Melitta Bentz.
Katharine Burr Blodgett, Inventor of invisible glass; Be thankful for your glasses, cameras, and computer screens folks. She also greatly contributed to the technologies in WWII AND was also the first female engineer employed at General Electric.
Tabitha Babbitt, Inventor of the circular saw; Probably a champion for “Work Smart, Not Hard“, men might be still going it the hard way if it weren’t for her.
Elizabeth Magie, Inventor of Monopoly; Tensions may flare here, depending on your experience, but there’s much to be said about the family… bonding… time that she gave all of us. She may have done it to point out the “flaws” of capitalism, but I’m curious to know if she realized an additional significance of her portrayal of capitalism as a game? Because the funny thing about games, is once you know all of the rules, anyone can win 😉
Grace Hopper, Inventor of computer software; Not only did they invent the screens, women invented the actual software as well. This woman should be an inspiration for computer science nerds everywhere. There’s also a fun fact about bugs on that page if you click the link!
Hedy Lamarr, Inventor of the secret communications system; wow, so many women stepping up during WWII. Not only did she help keep our communications secure, but you can also thank her for Wi-Fi and GPS. Oh, also she was also an actress.
Marie Van Brittan Brown, Inventor of CCTV; Unfortunately, born of a problem that shouldn’t existed (police not coming to help in a timely manner), BUT Marie said, “Whatever, I’ll handle it myself” and built her own security system and has contributed to the safety of many.
And we’ll end with one that is still alive and rockin’:
Shirley Jackson, Inventor of Touch tone telephone, fiber optic cables, solar cells, caller waiting, caller identification and portable fax; wow that’s a lot and she’s not done yet! She’s currently the president of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute too, I may just apply…
9 AMAZING WOMEN! And what’s great is that there are PLENTY of amazing women just like them in their own way.
I didn’t even mention business women or the creative arts geniuses. Women have contributed some of the most profound thoughts through literature and all of the arts as well.
Being Able to Live Their Day-to-day Life
Men, you don’t know what it’s like to be a woman, period. I can’t even begin to fathom what that life must be like.
There are a lot of ways I could take this, but I think the simplest way to convey it is just by letting Louis C.K.:
“The courage it takes for a woman to say yes [to a date with a man] is beyond anything I can imagine. A woman saying yes to a date with a man is literally insane, and ill-advised. How do women still go out with guys, when you consider the fact that there is no greater threat to women than men? We’re the number-one threat! To women! Globally and historically, we’re the number-one cause of injury and mayhem to women. We’re the worst thing that ever happens to them!“
Not only that, but they walk around with the equivalent (it’s really priceless, but I’m putting a number on it to put it into perspective) of ten million dollars in that, they have something that a good amount of people want. What happens when people know you have ten million dollars on you? Many try to take it by any means possible, and even if they use decent means there’s still a ton of people aiming for it it.
Men are you able to comprehend, or have you even thought about, how intimate and scary it is to connect with someone sexually? Sorry to get intimate here, but to let someone inside of her? No matter how well she vetted you, there’s still a possibility that you could be someone that isn’t who you say you are. That’s a very vulnerable position to be in, and it’s likely emotionally draining at the very least. Especially considering that a good number of the opposite sex don’t even every stop to give one micro-thought to the idea of what things are like from their perspective.
So let’s appreciate Women, but we don’t need a day for it.
Really, we don’t. We should appreciate women and all that they are EVERY DAY. We shouldn’t need a day to tell us to appreciate them. now I’m not saying we cancel the day, the day is great because it does serve as a reminder and we do take greater time out to appreciate everyone.
Be in awe of every woman you meet because they go through and deal with things that men could never even begin to imagine, or at least understand the full scope of.
While we’re at it, let’s drop the Women too.
I cannot speak on behalf of women, I can only speak to my own experience. In my experience, I have never been comfortable when someone points attention to my physical characteristics for I am not just a man, a white, a Hispanic, a straight, I am none of these things. And anyone reading this is not merely their physical characteristics either.
If you’re a woman reading this (or any classification of anything really, but we’re focusing on women today) then less attention should be paid to the fact that you have breasts and a vagina, and more attention should be paid to you as a whole, an individual.
YOU ARE SO MUCH MORE THAN YOUR PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.
YOU ARE MORE THAN THE SUM OF YOUR PARTS EVEN!
You are every challenge you have faced, you are every reaction you ever had, you are your laugh, you are the books that you read, you are every step and breath you have ever taken, you are the friends you’ve made along the way, you are all the jokes you know, you are the kindness within you, you are the lessons you have learned, you are your contribution to the world.
YOU ARE PERFECT! YOU ARE MAGNIFICENT! YOU ARE WHOLE!
YOU ARE SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST A WOMAN, YOU ARE [INSERT NAME HERE]!!!!!
You are so much more than just a woman, and we should appreciate you every day for that too. I certainly do my best to, I hope everyone else does a well.
I’ll end this with two quotes from the poet Rumi:
“What is the greatest lesson a woman should learn
that since day one
she’s already had everything she needs within herself
it’s the wold that convinced her she did not”
“Woman is the Radiance of God. She is not a creature, she is the creator.”
Wishing you all the best,
FCP 🙃
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