Feminism

I should be studying for my Sociology exam right now, but I was reading over the text book and got so bugged by this quote:

"Many women at the nation's most elite colleges say they have already decided that they will put aside their careers in favor of raising children." (Louise Story) This lead a columnist from the New York Times to ask: "So was the feminist movement some sort of cruel hoax?"

Both of these quotes were under a section entitled 'Opting Out'. I felt like this whole section was a little slanted and that it looked down upon women who are stay at home mothers by choice. The radical feminist movement is all about making women more like men. But, men are different from women and it's those differences that make men and women unique. So if women are "supposed" to be just like men, they wouldn't be women anymore, right?

How can it be "bad" and "non-femininistic" (yes I just made up this word) to be a mother? As The Family: A Proclamation to the World teaches, it is a sacred responsibility for mothers to be mothers and nurture. (No this is not a direct quote, but the Proclamation clearly teaches this principle). Being a mother is the most femine thing a woman can do because, to put it simply, men cannot give birth.

As President Uchtdorf says in his book, The Remarkable Soul of A Woman, "The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before... If you are a mother, you particitpate with God in His work of creation - not only by providing physical bodies for your children but also by teaching and nurturing them. If you are not a mother now, the creative talents you develop will prepare you for that day, in this life or the next."

I understand that some women cannot be stay at home mothers, even though they truly want to in their hearts. Everyone has their own family situation and each family has to do whatever works best for them. My argument is that it should not be looked down upon to exercise femine power to take on the responsibility to do everything you can to create a family and nurish the members of that family to be strong, happy, productive people.

I also know that it is necessary for woment to be treated with respect and equality in the sense that women are just as important as men in the world, which feminism in it's pure form. This doesn't have to mean that women have to become like men. But women should demand respect and be treated as equal. They should recognize their special, womanly talents empower them to gain that respect and equality.

I think being a loving mother is the most prestigious thing a woman can do, whether it's in this life or the next. I am so excited for the day that I get to raise my own family and nurture special Spirits throughout this earth life. I am so grateful for all of the examples of mothers in my life and especially my own mother.