So, I’ve been thinking a lot about being a woman in light of all of recent news and things I’ve read. As you’ve probably noticed, the news lately as been peppered with the following stories:
- Caitlyn Jenner (and the subsequent reactions to her)
- The Duggar scandal
- Rachel Dolezal’s racial identity crisis
- The announcement of a woman being put on the $10 bill
Some of my friends’ recent social media posts have been about:
- A friend pondered the reaction of women to a photo of a female celebrity being seen going for a run wearing lipstick.
- A bizarre backlash a woman I know received for posting selfies.
- A friend observed the confident attitudes of young girls as opposed to the sheepish and timid attitudes many teenage girls have.
- An observation from a friend who is a nurse that the first thing most people say when they see a newborn baby girl is, “Oh, isn’t she pretty!”
These things have all prompted a flurry of thoughts about how and why we as women, and also as a society, value women.
A woman’s (hell, a person’s) identity and worth should not be determined first and foremost by their outward appearance, rather, we should endeavor to evaluate people as Dr. King dreamed we would someday: by the content of their character.
I think we as women need to take responsibility for how we are perceived. Men have had far too great an influence for far too long on the perception, and, consequently the role and value, of women.
I think the best way to take that control back starts in the mirror.
(Omg…I’m sounding like one of my ex-husband’s Worst Nightmares: a feminist.)
I am pictured below, both unadorned and primped-and-painted. I am intelligent, capable, strong, and valuable…wearing either of these faces. (I gotta say, though, God bless the inventor of mascara!)
My friend, you are valuable, too, in whatever face you wear. One of the best pieces of advice I ever heard is this: “What is written on your heart will be written on your face.”
You are the face on your own currency.
You chose.
You chose.
You chose.
You chose to give away your love.
You chose to have a broken heart.
You chose to give up.
You chose to hang on.
You chose to react.
You chose to feel insecure.
You chose to feel anger.
You chose to fight back.
You chose to have hope.
You chose to be naïve.
You chose to ignore your intuition.
You chose to ignore advice.
You chose to look the other way.
You chose to not listen.
You chose to be stuck in the past.
You chose your perspective.
You chose to blame.
You chose to be right.
You chose your pride.
You chose your games.
You chose your ego.
You chose your paranoia.
You chose to compete.
You chose your enemies.
You chose your consequences.
You chose.
You chose.
You chose.
You chose.
However, you are not alone. Generations of women in your family have chosen. Women around the world have chosen. We all have chosen at one time in our lives. We stand behind you now screaming:
Choose to let go.
Choose dignity.
Choose to forgive yourself.
Choose to forgive others.
Choose to see your value.
Choose to show the world you’re not a victim.
Choose to make us proud.”
-Shannon L. Alder
