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Why work is so important to a woman's life, and why every woman must try it to keep the smile on her face
Why work is so important to a woman’s life and why every woman must try it to keep the smile on her face.
You are a total home-bird said my colleague in those days, during the very beginning of my career. Though I disagreed completely, I might have believed her down the lane.
Years later, after short stints of jobs and no steady career, I decided, maybe she was right. I loved my home. I loved my time alone, and I really loved my house neat and tidy. But though home was what I had settled for, I had this constant urge to express myself, to contribute, to make a difference in this world.
I know it sounds far-fetched and too philosophical, but I don’t think I should have bought into what my friend suggested. I clearly believed her judgment about me and accepted myself as someone ‘homely’, but in a disempowering way.
Don’t we all do this? When we are too lazy to decide on what we want, we settle, for somebody else’s judgment of ourselves. I urge all women out there not to buy into an idea again. I want everyone to have their own ideas, besides what others have to say about them.
So when I was labeled homely, what did the world mean? Did it mean I was being bracketed as a cooking – baking machine type or as out-going, or as the go-getter? How many names? How many labels? There is no stopping. Open any weekly matrimonial ad supplement and all you find is people looking for labels. Homely v/s the career oriented, salaried or non-working, but why can’t I be both? I could be homely and have the passion to make a difference in the world, a drive to contribute my bit.
It was never necessary to conform, it was never a rule to follow any rules. You could be this and that, you could be everything you dreamt of. I am homely – it means I have good taste which reflects in the way I have done up my home. It certainly doesn’t mean I lack ambition or passion to do things outside of my home. That is why it is important that every woman has an occupation. Am I suggesting that everyone has a job?
I say No, a job is not a necessity, but work is, and here is why:
While we all could have our own lists on why we should totally work and rock, I would say, make your own list and put it up your favorite wall at home.
pic credit: funkyah (used under a CC license)
A writer and singer by soul and homemaker by role, I am Malini Misra. I have dabbled with all the aspects of media, be it print, television, and also worked on research of a book read more...
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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