Here I am on election day pondering pantsuits, and wondering if my overalls might suffice when it's the best I could do these days? These hot pink babies have since become paler after a wash, and I bet I could get them white (the suffragette color) if I threw them in the washer with a lot of bleach.
I've actually been known to throw a jacket and a pretty scarf over my overalls with a string of pearls (now I have just the set from John and Mike that had been Momie's) with no one being the wiser.
Are you giggling yet?
As tempting as it might be to giggle, today is no laughing matter. As a woman, I'm beginning to wonder if we have ALL become way too complacent and comfortable in the progress that has been made in our lifetimes. Don't get me wrong, we still have a long way to go to true EQUALITY!
I forget that much of the progress for women in this country did happen in my lifetime. I am forever grateful to my friends who came ahead of me who blazed those trails, some of whom have passed on.
That I have no pantsuits today stunned me. Throughout my childhood until junior high, girls had to wear dresses to school. When I was in the 7th grade in 1967, the dress code changed and we were told we could wear pantsuits.
I wish I had pictures...mini-skirts and pantsuits, what a range! I remember making my own pantsuits with a pattern I'd found and liked. Mom helped me and in no time I had three favorite pantsuits- gray cord with a scoop neck, short sleeves and faux buttons down the front; navy blue wool V-neck with a blue-and red polka-dotted shirt that I wore underneath and loved; and, a white wool number. I confess-some were even bellbottoms.
What many people fail to see is that most of these advancements for women are about personal independence and power through choice. The availability of reliable birth control supported women in making those choices for themselves, beyond relationships into health and finances. I know that I would not have the life I have today had reliable birth control not been available to me.
I could go on and on, but today I'm 12. I'm sitting at the sewing machine with my Mom who is helping me make all of my new pantsuits. It seemed so simple at the time. It was just something I wanted to do. Then, it was a new freedom. We were on the edge of the sexual revolution. Six years later, I was having the birth control conversation that my Mom wasn't ready for. In time, Mom became an avid supporter of womens' rights and joined NARAL (The National Abortion Rights Action League). Today, it is symbolic-bordering on iconic!
We are a family of strong, independent, bright, accomplished women; whose sons, brothers, husbands and fathers are feminists and continue to be so. I am grateful for a family that fostered that strength and independence in its own way.
As Kat said, she'll be casting her vote this morning in honor and memory of Mom. When I early voted I did the same. If Mom were here, she would be proud!
We stand together!
We can't go back!
Please-VOTE!-
Comments