Thankful for all of the strong women in my life
When I was a kid, I remember seeing this book my mother bought titled “Breaking the Glass Ceiling.” At the time, I had no idea what the glass ceiling was, so I asked her about it. She explained to me that women were typically looked at as clerical workers, rarely ascending to management level positions. While the tide seems to have changed since then, some recent high-profile headlines seem to be attempting to drag us backwards toward the days when a woman was expected to just be a housewife. Some would even say that this trend is an effort to be great again, but I beg to differ. The women in my life are productive members of the workforce, and great moms to boot.
While my mother never did ascend into management, she did a great job of using her time later in her career to knock off several goals. She finished her bachelor’s degree while working full time. She did make it into leadership positions in a few of the professional organizations she participated in. Now, she volunteers with several other organizations, from trail keepers, to working in a local food pantry. She is the kind of person who makes things happen, never one to sit idly waiting for something to happen.
My sister is a doctor. I like to think as the older brother, that I set the bar pretty high with my master’s degree, leaving her no other choice but to one up me and go to medical school. You would think the MD would earn her instant respect from her peers, but sadly that was not the case early on. She told me about how some older male Dr’s would refer to her by first name instead of referring to her as doctor. This informality was a way they tried to keep her “in her place.” Anyone who knows my sister, knows that trying to keep her in her place is a mistake. She earned the right to be called doctor, just like the rest of them. After several years, she is now the head of her department. She ascended to be the leader that the rest of the group looks to for direction each day.
And around my house, watch your step, because there are lots of shards of glass that were once on the ceiling, now laying on the floor.
And then you have my wife. She was raised by a very strong woman, my wonderful mother-in-law. My wife started working for a car dealership in college, where she got a job answering phones. Flash forward several years later, and she is the General Manager of that same dealership. In a time when most people have to move their ladder to a new job in order to climb it, she climbed the whole ladder in one place. The car business, like lots of different industries, tends to be male dominated. In order to be in the position she is in, she had to stand out in a major way. And she did.
I travel with her occasionally as she goes to meetings with people from similar dealerships across the country. Quite often, she is the only woman general manager in attendance. Lucky me, I’m the “trophy husband” who gets to tag along, and I’m usually the only spouse there who is not a woman. Sometimes me and the rest of the ladies will go grab breakfast together!
The women in my life tend to be very successful in their professional and family lives. Just remember that as a whole, women still get paid less than men for doing the same jobs. They also deal with the stigma of not being as good as a man would be in those same positions. As a son, brother and husband to strong women, I just want to say that it doesn’t make me any less of a man to appreciate and admire how great they are at what they do. We need to make sure the women in our life get equal pay and respect in the workplace, without the harassment and disrespect they often incur. And around my house, watch your step, because there are lots of shards of glass that were once on the ceiling, now laying on the floor.
