By Sadie Poole-Zane, First Year Liberal Arts.
TWSS x The Croft
As part of our Women Empowerment series, the Croft asked people to write about strong women in their lives who inspire them. First year Liberal Arts student Sadie chose her mum, and gives her reasons why.
International Women's day. A day that celebrates womanhood. A day that invites us to think about what being a woman means. A day that makes us question who we admire and ask ourselves what kind of women we want to be.
The etymology of the word 'inspire' comes from the Latin 'inspirare', which means 'to breath into'. If you look at it from this definition, to be inspired by someone, is to symbolically ‘breathe’ them in. When considering who the inspirational women in my life are, I could have picked celebrities or people who have done remarkable things. However, if to be inspired by someone is to inhale them, it makes sense that it’s the everyday, real people in your life that have the most impact.
Identities are complex and ever-evolving. The various experiences that I've had, the people that I've met and made connections with, the places I've been to, the things I've read and watched, the music I've listened to, have all had an impact on who I am today. At 19 years old, I have a relatively strong sense of self. However, I am also aware that life is a constant and my identity is ever-shifting in relation to the new and different things I encounter every day.
"If to be inspired by someone is to inhale them, it makes sense that it’s the everyday, real people in your life that have the most impact."My mum has had a big impact. As I've grown up, our relationship has obviously changed and developed. However, her role as the 'educator' hasn't. She, in a sense, has been the guide to my 'feminist education'. I think because of this, she is my 'everyday hero', because she helped root in me the morals that I now regard as central to my identity.
If I historicise my mum’s life, it seems to follow a fairly standard middle-class timeline. She grew up in a suburban town in Hertfordshire, went to University, did a bit of travelling, finally got a serious job and then settled down and had kids.
However, the romanticised version of a passionate strong-willed feminist, who spent most of her 20's creatively exploring and cultivating her own identity, who travelled and wrote and freely lived, is a better story. And, no less true.
The woman who inspires me, is both this youthful free-spirit, and the cosy maternal figure that I know today.
At home, if you walked into my kitchen at about 6pm on a weekday, Mum always offers a cup of tea and talks about her day. Starting Uni, I assumed this ritual would stop. However, I have managed to cultivate a friendship group that loves nothing more than to congregate around a kitchen table for a cup of tea and a catch-up. Mum's inspiration is therefore in action now. She instilled in me the value of a cup of tea. I think she would say that her mum did the same for her.
I could have picked out a whole series of interesting things that my mum has inspired me with. Of course I've enjoyed and been inspired by the mythical retelling of stories from her past. But it’s in the abstract and it may or may not be true. We treasure the realness in everyday interactions more than the grand narratives, because we've lived through it. We treasure it because it's what we know, it provides comfort and security.
For International Women's Day, I am advocating the importance in the everyday narratives and the real people that inspire us. For me, that is my Mum and her inability to make a punctual cup of tea. She inspires me, warts and all.
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