Today is International Women’s Day. Officially, it’s a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. And maybe a bit more than that.
I’m sure all of us can think of women who meant a lot in our lives. Just start with our mothers and go from there. They don’t all have to have major accomplishments and have their names in history books to play an important role in our lives.
I can also look at my two grandmothers. Very different people on the surface, but both very important to me and to many others around them.
One could likely have been classified as a housewife. Nothing special about that, right? Except she raised ten children, who all turned out to be pretty good people in their own right and also kept a smallish farm for food purposes and cooked and fed the whole crowd on a regular basis. Might not seem like much to some people, but it makes me tired to just think of it. And there are still secrets to some of her recipes that some of us have never figured out to this day. And not for lack of trying. And I can’t have a cup of tea or play a game of cards without thinking of her.
My other grandmother was a teacher. In a day when women did not often work outside the home, she did. And influenced many along the way. Her children, at various points in their lives, also became teachers. So it must have had some effect. And she had some interesting friends. I didn’t see her often, but I remember meeting a couple people during visits to her over the years, only to later learn they were fairly well respected authors. To her, they were just friends. To others, some of these people were icons.
Over the years I have also met several women who have made their marks on entertainment and politics and any number of other fields. Most of them were just doing what they felt needed to be done, possibly not realizing what they were really accomplishing. But like most of us, they made the contributions they needed to make, and left their mark on the world. Even if they might not have realized it.
And there are those who I have only just heard about, who have made contributions both big and small that have made a difference.
While some may take this day to honour those who have made major achievements, I’m going to quietly celebrate those who have had an influence on me over the years. There have been more than a few. And they all deserve the recognition.
There are a lot of great women in our world. Maybe one right beside you. Or you might see one in the mirror. Let’s celebrate them all.
