Family Forms Female’s Flaws

Does family mean a lot to you? Or maybe it means nothing at all?

How about motherhood?

Being a mom is a big deal in today’s society. It really always has been and, at least for now, always will be. My mom means everything to me. She is a literal saint. St. Marilyn, as a lot of people like to call her. Just yesterday, my tire blew out and she drove 2 hours to get it towed and fixed because she knew I was busy all day and it was in a stranger’s driveway. She did this in spite of the fact that she just got off a 3 hour plane  ride and also an hour drive home from the airport.

Now I’m not a mom (unless pets count), so this article doesn’t exactly relate to me, 

but in “The New Momism” by Douglas and Michaels, they talk about how terrifying it is to be a mom in this day and age and how our kids could be killed at any second and how the media shows us every possible bad happening that are unrealistic but also not at the same time.

Among recent tragic events, school shootings have been higher than ever this year.

That’s my mom’s continuous paranoia. She hears sirens and freaks out. I don’t text her past midnight when I’m home on breaks and she freaks out. The “New Momism” is forcing moms to be constantly anxious and scared about their kids. Even when they’re near them, something could always, always, always go wrong, right? Do dads feel this way too, or is it just mothers?

 

So, who cares right? If you don’t have kids, you shouldn’t have to worry about people that are moms. People raise their kids how they want and that’s none of your business. Well, according toTatiana Morales from CBS News, being a mom is having multiple jobs. In terms of gendered norms stereotypes, moms are the caretakers. Moms birth the babies, clean the diapers, buy the clothes, cook the meals, do the dishes, fold the laundry, take the kids to school, teach them to walk, read, write, ride a bike, drive, etc. The list goes on and on. I am drawn to the topic of momism because I have such an angelic mom. She raised 4 kids as well as the 500 in the elementary school where she worked as a full time principal.

I’d like to quote Meghan Trainor and say “you might have a mom, she might be the bomb but ain’t nobody, got a mom like mine”.

The majority of our COMM 470 class are females and I believe we should care because we all have or have had moms in our lives and some of us are even thinking about taking that next step of adulthood soon. At college, we rarely see children and so babysitting and being around friends and neighbors kids is giving me baby fever. I guess I’m about at that age. It’s interesting to me because I never pictured myself being a mother but now that I think more and more about it, it might be an amazing life experience that I can’t live without.

Society stereotypes moms and puts them into a category. Why isn’t your mom picking you up from school, 4 year old Johnny? Oh I don’t know, because dad is? People can be concerned and question why mothers aren’t doing everything they possibly can to be MOMS! Roots can be placed back generation to generation and are mainly taken on because of fear, marketing, wishfulness and politics. (Morales, 2004)

 

This topic relates to the construct Becoming Gendered, The Family.  When we’re born, we don’t have a sense of self. We have chromosomes and crying, that’s about it. It’s our families and who we grow up with, how we’re raised that really sets us apart and makes us into who we are. We’re barely aware of being female or male until about 2. This sort of ties in Cognitive Development Theory.

We look up to role models for most of our young lives. I like to think that I have seen my mom as a role model, for as long as I can remember. She drops e v e r y t h i n g for her children. She loves us so much and it has (humbly) taught me to be a better human being and to be selfless. Mommy Myth, by Douglas and Michaels encourages moms to step out and step up. And that’s what my mom is doing. We see it all the time. Kids follow their parents footsteps.

Speaks for itself. 

I feel as though knowing that moms are the way that they are and their history and opinions will gradually help me understand gender norms. I see women as strong and independent when I think of moms handling a lot of stress and motherhood. I hope you take away a thought or two about how much your mom loves you. If your mom sucks or you hate her, I’m sorry you lasted this long.