My thoughts on the divinity of gender roles

I love being a woman, and I love the community of women in my life. I think there is something special about being a woman. However, I'm not sure, but I would bet that much of the differences between the genders is due solely to socialization.  I must say that I do not believe that there are gender roles that God expects me to fill because I am a woman.

I believe that there is no slippery slope of allowing women to be ambitious and men to be nurturing without censure. I see no downside to allowing people the freedom to decide for themselves what is the right path, what brings them closer to a place of spirituality. The world is a changing place and new opportunities are creating new ways for us to shape our lives.  There is no right way to be  a parent or a provider.

The loving Heavenly Parents I believe in want all of their children to be treated equally, to have access to opportunities and the ability to make choices so that they may live fulfilling and happy lives. I believe that they care more about our treatment of their children (ourselves included, we have to be kinder to ourselves) and that their needs are met, then they do who is filling which role to meet them.

I find the gender issues in our culture to be harmful and believe they need to change. I understand that change is scary and fear is powerful. But I remind myself constantly that He said "Do not fear for I am with you."

End of the Semester thoughts

Going to grad school, being exhausted, and overwhelmed, having very limited time to spend with my husband and two small children, literally being unable to do much in the way of cooking, cleaning, etc because I just didn’t have the time, doubting myself every minute, pushing myself beyond sane limits…   was the best thing to happen to my marriage since infertility.

Does that sound awful?? Well, it's true!

And grad school almost didn’t happen. I was really scared going into this process. I was afraid grad school would tear us apart. I think it's one of those things that either makes or breaks you. My husband had never been the kind to step in and pick up slack, but I think that he never REALLY needed to before. (I'm too damn capable!) I also think that seeing me trying so hard and really needing his help opened up some new piece of him. I really felt like it could seriously damage our marriage.. but in the end I decided that it was too important for that to stop me

Infertility meant that I was married for 4 years instead of 1 before I became a mom, I got to mature more as a person and learn how to be a wife before I had to learn how to be a mother... and grad school so far has meant that we're becoming to be a team, not competing factions for limited resources. It's an amazing paradigm shift. I finally feel like an equal partner whose goals and aspirations are equally important.. I know I have support, and that I can trust my husband to do the 'mom' jobs.. he's damn capable too.

It's amazing what supportive equality can do for your sex life. ;)