With it being International Women’s Day I thought this post might be even more on point today when we’re thinking about #PressforProgress!
For my parent’s generation, the women’s role was very clear, largely involving being a homemaker, wife and mother. Today, I’m pleased to say this has changed in many parts of the world, and the opportunities available to us are far wider reaching. Sadly some areas of the world are lagging behind in terms of equality and how women are treated. The fact that women have only just been permitted to enter football stadiums in Saudi Arabia seems totally incomprehensible compared to the western world I’m used to.
We still seem to have a long way to go, but with global activism for women’s equality fuelled by campaigns like #MeToo, #TimesUp and more, there’s a strong movement for continued change.
When I’ve struggled to find my own path in life, I try and remember that I do have choices and that’s the key! Although the option of bringing a child into the world with a partner may be out of my control, many other options aren’t and in my 40’s I’m trying to find my own way, rather than letting external factors dictate my happiness.
With the help of coaching, I have and will continue to work on my own choices that give me the most joy, if being a mother isn’t supposed to form part of that journey, I’m going to try my best to not let it define who I am and what I have to offer to the world.
Thinking back to what my Dad said to me when I was freezing my eggs ‘For what it’s worth Sarah I think what you’re doing is the right thing for you, but try to remember that if things don’t work out the way you had envisaged that there’s so much more to a women’s life these days than having children’. I realise how relevant these words are today.
For some women that do have children, being a mum is their world, but for many, it is a part of who they are. Either way, surely having a choice should be something that we embrace.
I think we should celebrate choice, a choice to be what kind of women we want to be, with no pressure to follow a path that is dictated by society or rules that aren’t fair for all.
