Hey there, fellow book dragons!
In honor of International Women’s Day, I thought I could write something about what it means to me to be a woman.
We have come a long way compared to how things were last century, even 20 years ago! Women keep getting more freedoms and more opportunities, as well as more platforms to speak and voice our opinions. We are making strides and effecting change increasingly each day, and it is absolutely wonderful. However, we still have a long way to go. Sexism is still pretty much a thing, though not as present, our appearances and choices are still judged, and women are divided on a number of important issues.
Despite this, I am choosing to focus on the positives today and talk about what I love about being a woman; things we should all be happy about!
- Being Resilient: Women are incredibly strong, that much is a given. We have experienced, and still do in some ways, experienced a lot of injustice and struggles, and there are so many who have fought and worked so hard to help makes things better for the present generations, and that is something to be proud of
- Being Vulnerable: Due to gender stereotypes, women are seen as ‘weak’ and with our hearts on our sleeves and more emotional and sensitive (with the idea in mind that we can be blubbering messes and that we allow our emotions to take over). Despite these negative connotations with vulnerability, it’s something to embrace! Why shouldn’t we be happy about being more in tune with our feelings? Everyone should be more accepting about being vulnerable, not just women (!!!).
- Being Passionate: Women are passionate, and it is something we cannot really deny. Whether it is about family, work, friends… we generally tend to be very vocal about how we feel about things, and whilst some might say that women can be too vocal, our passion is something we can never forget, and we should never be sorry about.
- Embracing Beauty and Diversity in all Shapes and Forms, and Empowering Other Women: Women come in all shapes and skin colors and sizes, with unique perceptions and insights, and that diversity is something to be praised. Nowadays, it looks like society is becoming more accepting, but there’s still a lot of stigma around weight, appearance, and how women should come across to others, and that needs to change. We are all unique and beautiful, and whilst not everyone will be able to see it, it does not mean that you aren’t. And we should all being doing more to empower each other.
- Being Understood and Understanding Others: We’re not perfect. Sometimes we mess up, or step on each other’s toes, or can even be too harsh when that isn’t the intention. And that’s okay! Being human means making mistakes and learning from them. Women need the room to experiment, find their people, grow, and live their lives without all that extra & unnecessary judgment; and women also need to be more understanding with each other!
- Being Fierce: Sometimes anger is necessary, and anger is needed. There are so many things happening that we should be angry about and we should be fighting for, but we can’t do anything if we don’t feel anything about it.
- Having a Voice: Women have come so far, and we need to make sure that all those sacrifices by the previous generations that were not in vain. As women, we need to work hard to help effect change and makes things better for future generations with love, compassion, and collaboration.
Hope you enjoyed this little post! What makes you proud to be a woman? Let me know in the comments below!
Written by: Alexia DeBono
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