March 8: International Women's Day

"International Women's Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women seeking to participate equally in society on an equal footing with men. Until women are fully represented at senior leadership levels of public, professional and economic life, women do not have equal rights nor an equal voice."
*Source: IWD

Although I believe that the history behind International Women's Day is something greater than what it is means today, I think that it is important that we remember that while March 8 only lasts 24 hours in a 365 day period, a woman's struggle lasts a lifetime. Although we have come a VERY long way in the past 100 years, we still have a very long way to go to ensure that our daughters and granddaughters have the rights that we have now and then some more. We need to get rid of the glass ceilings in the workplace, of the government's desire to make reproductive choices for us, of the poor representation we have in government, etc.

We live in a world in which the woman's role is greater than anyone can ever imagine. No longer is the man the sole bread winner or the head of the household in most cases or even the one with the better education. The woman of the twenty first century is one who is more likely to have completed higher education, she holds a job, AND also makes sure that the household is taken care of. Notice that we take on more responsability and yet we only get half of the credit.

I hope that the day my unborn daughter Fiona goes out into the world, she will be welcome with open arms and encouraged by said world to be the best she can be as measured by her skill not by gender.