Nothing Super. Quite Average.

International Women’s Day is right around the corner and I am just bracing myself for the posts. 

The image of a lady with 10 hands, the countless Superwoman write-ups, the nobody-can-be-a-mother blah, and the endless comparison to Goddesses.

Please. Stop. Please.

Here’s a little reality check — women are human. 
We seem to have to say this a lot. Either because we are treated like animals or because we are glorified to the point of expecting miracles from us.
And that’s a problem.

When you say that a man can’t cook, clean, care for the household and have a career, but that a woman can, what you really mean is, a woman has to.
But we can’t. It is a fucking pain in the ass.
Some of us try.. maybe to fit into this narrative, maybe because our moms did it and maybe because not doing so is a sign of failure. 

“At work, she is a boss lady, at home, she is the ideal wife, mother, and daughter-in-law.” ....And inside her head, she is absolutely messed up!!!!!

Born to a mother who was the epitome of ‘hustle-culture-but-make-it-90s-and-female’, what I saw growing up was a woman who woke up, packed a delicious lunch, and left for work by 7:45 every morning. The only respite — she trained her daughter to hustle too. So I made my breakfast, went to school, and came back to get started on dinner. (My dad was working in a different state/country)

My mom excelled at work, was a great cook, ran the household, and took me out on weekends. She taught me to be independent. She taught me to be a strong woman who could do it all.

I confused that with feminism, till I knew better.

Being able to do it all does not mean we have to. And it for sure does not mean doing it all at once.
I am a great cook on Sunday. On Monday, I am good at my job. On Saturdays, I am a fun mom. On Fridays, I am just a blob that moves.

Now, my mom watches in equal parts of fascination and horror as she sees me pass on ‘my duties’ to my husband. 

We have spent too long propagating ideas of men being incapable of multitasking, of men lacking a mother’s instincts, of men lumbering about cluelessly without a woman to ‘take care’ of them.
It is getting quite boring now. Let’s break that.

We, women, are average, mediocre even. Nothing super at all. 
We could be — if you give us that Captain America serum, or a radioactive spider or some cool shit like that — but as of now, we are just utterly human.

If you can’t work 8 hours and make a gourmet dinner, we can’t either. If you’d rather sleep till 10, we would too. If your kid's constant crying is annoying you, it is DEFINITELY annoying us too. 
But we sail through.

This Women’s Day, appreciate the women around you for sailing through. 
Or take the next step and grab an oar. 

It can be smooth sailing.