Saturday, February 11, 2012

Hail To Motherhood

I often reflect about the reality of modern society that all women are encouraged to get advanced degrees and then to go to work. I often feel that the biggest victims are the children and that society needs mothers more than they need female lawyers. OF COURSE, if a woman feels an emotional need to go out to work it's a different story. I am talking about all those who work as a matter of course, or because others are doing it or because they feel inferior living in a culture that doesn't respect full time motherhood. [Other women work in order to put food on the table. Food is critical for the perpetuation of Jewish life so I am not relating to such women either.] I passionately believe that the BEST THING for children is to get as much time and attention from a mother as possible. How delighted I was to see the latest on-line addition of the magazine Klal Perspectives devoted to the topic of women in the workplace. I encourage you to read it [unless you are learning Torah which is the best:-)].

Here is a passage written by Faige Twersky that caught my eye:


Betty Freedan, one of the early, strident voices of the women’s liberation movement, reversed herself when she saw the devastation her view had wrought. Barbara Walters, a major television personality, has stated that after life on the public scene, her idea of liberation is going back home.
Ann Richards, a political figure from the South, has stated that while she has had disappointments in her life, races lost, and ups and downs on the political scene, the only failures that affected her to her core were the ones in the realm of relationships - husband-wife, children, friends, etc.

Ultimately, women draw their energy and their life force from relationships. Temporarily, we may be blindsided by the lure of instant gratification and positive feedback that is so much more easily achieved in the world out there – in the world of illusion. The question, however, is at what price?