Abolishing Gender Roles

Throughout my life, I've time and time again been presented with the societal expectations that come with being a woman. I've never been one to cook or clean, but give me an IKEA desk and I can have it put together in an afternoon.

There were never standardized gender roles in my home growing up, my parents shared the responsibilities of cooking and cleaning, of laying sod and repainting the house. And for that, I have my mom to thank.

My mom has always traded off responsibilities with my dad, as to run a co-parent household. Long before Internet banking was a thing, she taught him how to balance a checkbook so he could share in the responsibility every other month. She isn't one to take no for an answer, and when met with resistance, she firmly stands her ground.

Just last week when she decided she wanted pork tenderloin on SuperBowl Sunday, she fired up the smoker at 5 AM and produced the best pulled pork we'd ever had, a role outside of the gender roles set forth by society.

If I had to describe my mom in one word, it'd be: confident. There's never been a time when she backed down from adversity. I watched her walk away from a business  opportunity because she knew she wasn't being treated in the way that she deserved. I watched her completely switch careers, and then rise again to the top at her new position.

There was a time when my mom was raising two, young children, working full-time, and getting her second degree, as she was unhappy in her current position and wanted to change career paths. She still showed up to sit sideline at my brother and I's soccer games, still helped us with our homework, and even incorporated her homework into Friday night movie night so we could all be together as a family.

My mom has always been a leader, both in the home and in the workplace. Through her actions, she empowers me to challenge societal standards, to rise up and pave my own path. She wears her shining armor with pride, and I strive to embody her confidence each and every day.