Taking a stand...sort of

Today is the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day.  Sadly, I don't really know anything about the history of the day or how it came to be.  I may check out Wikipedia, the all-knowing source of knowledge, and gain some insight.  Nevertheless, I'm glad that such a day exists because it does bring some troubling things to light (such as the continuing struggle for equal rights and the places where women still suffer barbaric punishment for virtually no reason) as well as celebrating the great things that have been accomplished and the women who made them happen. 

Now, I hope I'm not making light of these wonderful women and their bravery by writing what I'm about to write.  But I kind of feel like I'm fighting my own little battle in the great war of equal rights.  I know a lot of girls my age (or any age, for that matter) are very fond of cooking and taking care of their homes and children and whatnot.  And I really think that's great...as long as it's their choice and it's what they want, without feeling like their gender predetermines their fate.  However, I don't have these traditional "female" inclinations in the slightest.  That's not to say that someday I won't want to have a family of my own, but right now I don't exactly have the burning sensation, so to speak.  I hate to cook, I mean really hate it.  I've had to cook a lot more than usual lately since my mom's injury and I thought I might start to get a hankering for it...quite the contrary, actually.  I dread having to cook when I get home from work and am tempted every night to just pick up a pizza.  And I loathe cleaning (which I think is a little more normal than my other shortcomings) and really only do what is absolutely necessary.  But the thing I have a little bit of a problem with is the assumption that I will have to do all this "housewife" stuff someday and, what's more, I will actually come to enjoy it.

Again, let me state that I don't think there's anything wrong with the stay-at-home wife and mother, if that's what a woman wants.  However, there is a general understanding that all women will eventually get this drive to take on the traditional role.  I also get a little bit of a feeling that I'm viewed as a non-woman because I don't have these desires.  I'm actually rather proud of my lack of domestic skills (as I've stated before).  I probably have a bit of a chip on my shoulder, it's true, and I could be completely fabricating these "slights."  Nevertheless, I don't want to be made to feel like less of a woman just because I don't like to cook and don't like to clean and maybe I'll never get married or have children.  Those things are not automatic when you are assigned female genitalia.  In fact, I love sports, both playing and watching (mostly watching these days), I know quite a bit about cars, I'm fascinated by history and zombies and other seemingly non-feminine things.  I also love to shop, have an unhealthy attachment to Coach bags, and could give Imelda Marcos a run for her shoe money.  All these qualities make me me and I'm more comfortable with myself now than I've ever been before.  I enjoy being a girl!

Now let me be honest...I really do hope that someday I will find a man that I love and want to share my life with.  I think that, one day, I will want to have children also.  And I know that, when this happens, I'm going to have to, if not change, at least soften my view of stereotypical womanhood.  I also know that, in the right situation, I will enjoy cooking and cleaning and taking care of my family because it will be what I want to do.  So, right now, I'm a semi-feminist, I guess.  I like girly things as well as manly things and that's the way I'm supposed to be.

Happy International Women's Day!!!