March 8th is International Women’s Day and a chance to celebrate the women’s movement.
It is also an opportunity to reflect on those who changed history: Emmeline Pankhurst, Amelia Earhart, Rosa Parks, Mary Wollstonecraft, to name a few. However, what about the women who we see every day? The women who you choose to surround yourself with? This is your yearly reminder to give the women in your life a hug and thank them for all that they are, as, after all, we can learn so much from them.
MUM
Your mum is probably the person who will be the most brutally honest with you. She’ll tell you exactly what she thinks of the clothes you wear and the boys you date. However, she’ll only be doing it out of love – although it might not seem that way at the time. She just doesn’t want you to make the same mistakes that she did, saving you the embarrassment. And, honey, with insta, you’ll be grateful in the end.
GRANDMOTHER
Your grandma is the one with the most stories to share. Yes, the world that they lived in at your age is very different to the one we currently inhabit. It isn’t surprising though that there are various themes that cross generations: love, heart break, careers, motherhood, etc. I love talking to my grandmother about putting the world to rights as I can see her perspective on topics and take them with me when making judgements and opinions in the future. Ask your grandma what she thinks of our world and how she would approach it. You may be surprised by her answers.
SISTER/ FRIENDS
Sisters are just like marmite. And to be honest, so are your friends at some point. They don’t think the boy your seeing is any good for you? Steal your favourite top? Say your bum has got bigger? Yes, they might be a pain sometimes, but they are also the people that you can make memories with and show the ‘true’ you. The love that they have for that version of you is what you can learn by implementing it on yourself. As well as the ways that they are trying to better the world and themselves. Why not try a fitness challenge together? Or eat the chocolate cake together? Either is love wouldn’t you agree?
YOUR FEMALE COWORKERS/ TEACHERS
Now, this one can be tricky. Hopefully, your boss encourages the best version of you at work. They see the potential in you and will give you constructive criticism on how to achieve that. See how they work effectively, their work ethic, how often they give themselves a break – all of these are important not only to become a better worker, but also for our mental and physical health. And the more ‘well’ that we are in ourselves, the better we will be at our jobs/ education, which is a win-win scenario.
THE BARISTA AT STARBUCKS/ THE BUS DRIVER/ LADY WHO TAKES THE SAME COMMUTE AS YOU
You get where we are going with this. There is always one person in each day who greets you with a smile, polite manners and wishes you a good day/ night. Steal all of that from them and become that person for someone else. Just like it made your day, you will probably make someone else’s.
To Read Next:
How to become an activist in high school