You and I have both heard that famous saying, though who originally said it, I don’t know. “Well behaved women rarely make history” has been a saying that tips its hat at the wild woman, the gal out there that wants to blaze her trail and leave no stone unturned.
I tend to think that the idea of well behaved women rarely making history was born from the idea that throughout history, it has generally been men that have been outside of the home, making a name for themselves. When they were out working, climbing the corporate ladder, pursuing their American Dream, and of course sacrificing their time and energy and years to this pursuit; where were the women?
The Important Undertaking of Home Life
Previous generations saw women staying behind at home, tending to the affairs of the household, raising the families, keeping the home, and managing all of the bodies, people, buildings, and welfare of all in their care. To do this is a massive undertaking of the most important kind. It is because women have historically been in this all-important role that their spouses have been able to go outside the home and ‘make history’.
All history is important, don’t misunderstand me. Certainly, the work and plight of the men in generations past and today are important, but as a woman myself, I cannot help but admire and be inspired by women throughout history and today. We are jugglers. We are fixers. We are tired, exhausted even, but we act tirelessly. We are givers of the biggest kind, and we are selfless. We always have been. In addition to all of this, today’s woman also juggles careers outside of the home, manages child care and extracurricular activities, and basically churns through her days like a well-oiled machine.
New Normal
It is nothing short of miraculous and it is today’s new normal. Since everyone does it, the expectation is that’s just the way it is and that it happens effortlessly, and most women pull off daily miracles with apparent ease.
But we all know the truth. We are skating through our days by the skin of our teeth, making due with less so that we can give more, we often feel like we’re juggling a dozen different balls with only one arm, and yet we still find a way to keep everything in the air without missing a beat, without dropping the ball.
Kudos to you well-behaved women everywhere, pulling off the impossible day after day. You’re the true history makers though you will take none of the credit you are due, and I am so proud to be among you. You inspire me every day to do more, be more, give more.
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