I’ve been a proud member of Yahoo’s Motherboard since its beginnings and love being able to dive into topics and blog about issues that resonate with me. In honor of Women’s History Month, the Motherboard has asked me to write about 5 women I want my daughter to know…and let me just say this; she already knows three of them; her two aunts and her grandmother.
I grew up with two sisters and as an adult there isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not yakking on the phone to one or both of them—in fact- we’re prone to participating in many three-way calls. I also have a brother who is 12 years my junior and while I love him equally the relationship we share is completely different. In fact, we can often go for weeks without speaking on the phone and when we do, our conversations are pretty succinct. I certainly don’t find myself gushing to him, the way I would with my sisters, about the state of my marriage, my weight, or my motherhood dilemmas. I do believe that because we aren’t the same gender we are prone to communicating on totally different wavelengths—the saying that men are from Mars and women are from Venus does ring true.
When I had my own kids, a daughter and a son, I was a bit crestfallen over the fact that my daughter would not experience a sister relationship, as I believe mine has been crucial in helping me develop into the woman I am today. Yet having these three women in my life who have literally invested so much of who they are in my daughter- and are essentially her three other moms– I feel blessed that she has such strong, creative and resilient women looking out for her.
My mother has imparted my daughter with her joie de vivre- her sense of joy about life; grabbing it by the horns and never letting go. She’s encouraged her to hone her skills and take pride in her abilities. She really is my daughter’s biggest cheerleader and has been a sounding board for her about everything from friendships to clothing.
Both of my sisters have guided my daughter in all matters of fashion and creating her own unique persona. Every opportunity they get they never fail to shower her with physical and emotional affection and to inquire about what she is feeling. And by both being working professional moms, they are providing her with excellent role models of what women can achieve
Sure there are celebrities, historical figures, athletes and the like who I’d encourage my daughter to emulate– but more importantly than anything- the women in my family are the three top contenders… the rest of them… it’s just gravy!
What about you who are the women you’d like your daughter to know?
So sweet and so true. I talk to my sisters (in law) way more then I talk to my brothers. And if there is anything I need or want to know about or from my brothers I usually go to their wives for the answers!
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