Extraordinary Women

There was a casting call recently asking for videos talking about "extraordinary women" that we know.

I saw it, and didn't think about it too much until later.

One of the many delightful fringe benefits of being a woman is that you sometimes (more frequently as you age) wake up at three or four in the morning and can't go back to sleep.  This happened  to me that next morning and while I tossed and turned I realized that I wanted to submit a video, even though I knew it wasn't exactly what they were looking for.

My video would be about every "ordinary" woman I know.

The woman who, to the world is nothing, but to those in her immediate circle of family and friends is EVERYTHING.

                                               my mom (and dad. He's pretty great, too.)


Consider the woman who has found a way to provide three meals a day for multiple people year in and year out for more than half of her life, just as a matter of course. And even after her kids are grown, and she has already provided around 17,000 meals for just one kid alone, she continues to make Sunday dinner once a week so that her home can be a gathering place.  A place of love.

Or the woman who has real, genuine rejoicing when her son actually lifts the lid, and aims without any over spray or dripping. (ha. ha. J/K  That one has never really happened.)

Or the woman who carries a prayer in her heart for that child that desperately needs just one good friend to see them through adolescence. Sometimes to realize that she may be it.

Or the woman who has a smile for her family and friends when inside she is despairing.

And is not every "single mom" extraordinary?  It makes me cry to think of these women and the absolute angels that they are, and the angels that must be supporting them in their day to day lives without a husband to listen to them and bear them up.

And women who deal with an overwhelming hormone cycle EVERY MONTH and continue to get out of bed and press forward as though it is the most normal thing in the world. (okay, it is. I'll give you that. But still.....)

I know women who have spent endless hours caring for very sick parents and children without a second thought, I know women who are in abusive relationships, I know women who were abused as young girls, I know women who suffer with mental illness, I know single moms, I know women who suffer terribly with health issues, including breast cancer and mastectomy, thyroid cancer, other cancers, lupus, PCOS, MS, epilepsy, and more. I know women who desperately yearn to be mothers, and live through the roller coaster of infertility issues that is absolute hell.  I know women whose kids have forsaken the beliefs that they hold most dear.  I know women who have never known the joy and companionship of marriage.  I know women whose mothers did not nurture them.  I know women whose children are addicted to pornography or drugs. I know women whose husbands have gone stark raving mad and left them with multiple children. I know women who have watched their parents slowly and cruelly fade away to the effects of Dementia or Alzheimers.  I know women who have struggled with eating disorders and body image. I know women who suffer from anxiety and depression. I know women who have kids with special needs who go to extraordinary measures to help them have "normal", happy lives. I know women who suffer regularly with self doubt. I know women who have sent husbands to war.

This list represents my 45 years and the women that have filled them. You have a list too. The miracle is that you would never guess these things about these women. They are nurturers, they are dear friends, they are PTA helpers, they serve in the community, they pray for others and write letters of encouragement, they make meals for their families, and families in need. These women get out of bed and go to work every day and are creative and productive and beautiful and fun. They have taught my kids. I have laughed with every one of these women.  They have made my life better and brighter in real ways. They have helped me cook dinner, they have loved my kids, they have taught me to be more disciplined and work harder. They have introduced me to art and music and books that I didn't know existed. They have overlooked my faults.We have commiserated about our latest coping strategies, our kids, our favorite books, and what the bleep we are going to make for dinner. We have walked and talked and eaten and loved each other and those in our circles of influence.  We have cried.
But we have laughed more.

To me, these women are extraordinary!
To me, and the other people with whom they share this experience we call life, they are EVERYTHING.