For the strong women...

Riding the Loop every morning, I get the opportunity to see some common sites, and then the not so common ones, the brightly colored business men in their expensive suits, the massive amount of life through texting, the strangely adjusted college kids off to their big city jobs – all of us swaying, or just falling, to the movement of the not so smooth Brown Line. We all compete for our little private space on the train, we all want our little uninterrupted corner with no one’s armpit in our face, or ass on our cheek (if you get a seat) – we just want to make it to work, and do our job, and very rarely do we ever say hello or exchange smiles – we just look for that extraordinary sight, knowing that there is something of interest beyond our iPod or iPad or The Red Eye… This morning, and just about every morning and evening commute, I see the strong women boarding the train – the confident mothers carrying loads of groceries and pushing a stroller, the daily workers reading and writing emails, the high powered money brokers talking silently on their phones – all of them focused on the task at hand, not so distracted, some perfectly in order, others in the process of getting there, some, just there – The strong women are there – you see it and sense it in their eyes and the way they hold their shoulders high, and take command of their surroundings – you see the confidence they have- almost an aura of simple ease about them – and most of them are strong women – they move, like the train, along the tracks, but more gracefully, more aware, more ready to change directions when needed to do what needs to be done. Being blessed with a strong mother, sister, partner, makes me take note of all of the strong women. There is some hesitation when I notice them – I know that someone is counting on them, and you can see that they understand the responsibility – they know the price to pay for failure. I am not sure if this is something that women share, their joint responsibility and awareness that they bring life to the world – they can raise and feed their children, they can comfort the tired, they can make sense out of the driving confusion of a testosterone infused conference room. They don’t need to strap on their helmets, their sensibility is that of a cautious predator, and a subtle musician – the work is not work, it is another facet that they accomplish – whether that be parenting, coaching, comforting, leading, or driving the machine of business, and they gracefully attack and make simple work of those things. I cannot speak for all men, only this one, and I envy that ability to put the process in context. Perhaps that is something that the responsibility of motherhood creates, or something that the way men are raised or built or chemically made up, that separates us from them. There is grace in their actions and words. There is spirit in their touch and approach. There is fire in their eyes. There is soul in their embrace. They are the strong women. No matter what. They approach the diaper changes and mass layoffs with a vision, and for them, I am grateful, because there is comfort in their presence. Until next time… G