Theos-Talk Archives (January 1995 Message tl00085)

Dear Jerry,

Thank you for a very well-thought through, and thorough treatment
of this topic.  I really like what you said, & agree with most of
it & I'm saying that very sincerely.

However, as a woman, & a feminist, I have to raise my voice about
1 of your sentences: "most" -women- " would much rather stay home
& have & take care of children".  I think that many young women
today are not satisfied with just staying home & raising
children.  They also want a career.  The art of juggling the 2 is
one of the major problems women face today, at least the well
educated ones.  I don't know that much about the others.

I myself think that raising my kids was the most wonderful,
satisfying thing I did with my life.  I'm very proud of the men
they are today.  I stayed home with them, while they were little,
because I wasn't going to have some baby sitter bring them up,
not even partially.  That was something I & my husband wanted to
do ourselves.  But when they got older, I wanted to go to work
...  at a satisfying job, & I did.  I think that made me into a
better, certainly a more versatile & interesting person.  I could
talk about something besides how smart my 2 boys were in school.
(That's what every mother, & now every grand mother, & even great
grand mother talks about.  All kids are geniuses, I've found out
now.) Besides, in my case, working was also financially good,
because I was able to help put them through school after my
husband died.  I guess, had he lived, my salary would still have
been needed to get them through school.  Even in my day, mothers
went to work for that reason.  Now that I'm retired, I'm finally
doing some of the enjoyable activities I never got to while I was
raising my kids & working.  I think if I'd just stayed at home, &
cleaned house, & cooked, I would have died of boredom.  That's
just not my bag.

Sorry to have to raise an objection to your very thoughtful
essay, but I had to.

Liesel