Biological Differences and THE FAMILY
Do we live in a man's world? I don't think so. I think we live in a plant and animal world. We are human animals. Our species needs both male and female humans, in order to survive. That has always been the case, for our race.
Some animals don't need to be male or female. They can reproduce and carry out their lives with no need for a partner or sex. We are different. We need the opposite sex to continue.
Beyond biology, there are many other things we need from the opposite sex. The lines and boundaries of our respective sexes have become quite blurry, but one fact remains true. Women are the only ones who produce eggs. Men are the only ones who produce sperm. We can put them together in lots of different ways, to serve lots of situations, but we can't ignore our biology. I'm not sure why we would want to.
I'm a wife and mother. Those are my most important vocations. I do other things and play other parts, but my primary focus is on being a wife and mother. My husband is a father. His primary focus is on being a husband and father. Beyond that, he also plays other parts. He is the financial provider for our family. He is a son, brother, uncle and friend.
I am a daughter. I was a daughter before I was anything else. Being female is such an important and fabulous part of who I am. In my family, we celebrate women AND men. We acknowledge the biological differences and ENJOY them. They aren't something to ignore. They aren't something to be ashamed of. They are real. They are different.
My father was surrounded by women, from a very early age. His mother stayed home to raise he and his seven younger siblings. There were four boys and four girls. Even numbers. That's how my Grammy likes it. Therefore, my father saw a strong husband and wife, raising strong boys and girls. No one told him that he was better than girls. No one told the girls that they were less valuable than boys. Everyone was valued because they were UNIQUE! That's how I was raised, too. Our household wasn't even. I have one sister, so it was three women (including my mom) and one man. My father, a self-proclaimed Feminist, reveres women for their differences and celebrates our individual abilities and strengths.
I always knew I was intelligent, beautiful and capable, when I was growing up. I knew that because my parents told me I was, recognized my accomplishments and helped me to overcome my weaknesses. They were a solid team. They performed very different roles in our family. My father was our financial provider and a great husband and dad. My mother stayed home to raise my sister and I. She was our first love, our teacher, our advocate and our friend. She always says that we are her 'life's work'.
Now that I'm a mother, I understand what she meant. My boys are certainly my 'life's work'. Their education and the relationship I have with them is always third in my mind. That's right, I said third. My first thought is of myself. My second is of my relationship with my husband. My children exist because of the first two priorities. They wouldn't be happy, thriving young boys if I didn't prioritize my life in this way.
We're raising men. We're not raising women. My boys need their father to show them how to be a man. I can show them an example of how women can live. I can show them how women need to be treated. I can't show them how to be a man. I'm limited by my biology. It isn't a weakness. It's reality. I need him to be the husband and father. I need him to honor his commitments, just as he needs me to honor mine. If we had girls, he would need me to show them how to be women.
I'm outnumbered, in my house, by three to one. Does that bother me? Not one bit. I like it this way. I'm sure I would have enjoyed girls, just as much, but that wasn't in the cards. I'm a very strong, highly emotional, extremely intelligent woman. I don't need other women living in my house to remind me that I'm a woman. It's obvious. It's biology. Beyond the simple biological differences, we are simply four individuals who are doing the best we can to learn, grow and love each other. I wouldn't have it any other way.
This is my life's work. What is yours?
Some animals don't need to be male or female. They can reproduce and carry out their lives with no need for a partner or sex. We are different. We need the opposite sex to continue.
Beyond biology, there are many other things we need from the opposite sex. The lines and boundaries of our respective sexes have become quite blurry, but one fact remains true. Women are the only ones who produce eggs. Men are the only ones who produce sperm. We can put them together in lots of different ways, to serve lots of situations, but we can't ignore our biology. I'm not sure why we would want to.
I'm a wife and mother. Those are my most important vocations. I do other things and play other parts, but my primary focus is on being a wife and mother. My husband is a father. His primary focus is on being a husband and father. Beyond that, he also plays other parts. He is the financial provider for our family. He is a son, brother, uncle and friend.
I am a daughter. I was a daughter before I was anything else. Being female is such an important and fabulous part of who I am. In my family, we celebrate women AND men. We acknowledge the biological differences and ENJOY them. They aren't something to ignore. They aren't something to be ashamed of. They are real. They are different.
My father was surrounded by women, from a very early age. His mother stayed home to raise he and his seven younger siblings. There were four boys and four girls. Even numbers. That's how my Grammy likes it. Therefore, my father saw a strong husband and wife, raising strong boys and girls. No one told him that he was better than girls. No one told the girls that they were less valuable than boys. Everyone was valued because they were UNIQUE! That's how I was raised, too. Our household wasn't even. I have one sister, so it was three women (including my mom) and one man. My father, a self-proclaimed Feminist, reveres women for their differences and celebrates our individual abilities and strengths.
I always knew I was intelligent, beautiful and capable, when I was growing up. I knew that because my parents told me I was, recognized my accomplishments and helped me to overcome my weaknesses. They were a solid team. They performed very different roles in our family. My father was our financial provider and a great husband and dad. My mother stayed home to raise my sister and I. She was our first love, our teacher, our advocate and our friend. She always says that we are her 'life's work'.
Now that I'm a mother, I understand what she meant. My boys are certainly my 'life's work'. Their education and the relationship I have with them is always third in my mind. That's right, I said third. My first thought is of myself. My second is of my relationship with my husband. My children exist because of the first two priorities. They wouldn't be happy, thriving young boys if I didn't prioritize my life in this way.
We're raising men. We're not raising women. My boys need their father to show them how to be a man. I can show them an example of how women can live. I can show them how women need to be treated. I can't show them how to be a man. I'm limited by my biology. It isn't a weakness. It's reality. I need him to be the husband and father. I need him to honor his commitments, just as he needs me to honor mine. If we had girls, he would need me to show them how to be women.
I'm outnumbered, in my house, by three to one. Does that bother me? Not one bit. I like it this way. I'm sure I would have enjoyed girls, just as much, but that wasn't in the cards. I'm a very strong, highly emotional, extremely intelligent woman. I don't need other women living in my house to remind me that I'm a woman. It's obvious. It's biology. Beyond the simple biological differences, we are simply four individuals who are doing the best we can to learn, grow and love each other. I wouldn't have it any other way.
This is my life's work. What is yours?
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