 | | Wise Women | March 2006 newsletter | | | "In life, all good things come hard, but wisdom is the hardest to come by." Lucille Ball, actress
Aunt Edith turned 95 this month. Three generations of family and friends celebrated her birthday. At the party, I reflected on her life. Aunt Edith came to this country as a small child from Poland with her mother and five siblings. She worked in a factory from age 14, sewing garments to make enough money to support her mother and send her brother Henry to college, where he received a master's degree in Electrical Engineering. Aunt Edith never married. She lives on her own, signs her own checks, rarely complains, and talks more about the news of today than stories of the past. At age 94, she reluctantly accepted the fact that she had outlived her retirement funds. Unhappily, she filed for government assistance. Last month, Aunt Edith learned that due to her cousin's death, she would inherit a sum of money that would make it possible to once again support herself without needing help from "Uncle Sam." While she received this money with mixed emotions, knowing that she could now remain independent made this a wonderful birthday.
Aunt Edith represents a generation of women very different from the young nieces who celebrated her birthday with her. Her value system has always been clear: be happy you have a job, your boss "is the boss," be loyal to the company, be self-sufficient, accept what life offers you, and take time to smell the roses that grow in your garden. Although she is the product of a matriarchal home, Edith always lets you know that the males in the family, then and now, are the strong, intelligent, and "important" ones. Even my two-year-old grandson, Max, is on that list.
While it would be rare to see 95-year-old women in the workplace, 74% of women between 16 and 60 are employed or seeking employment today. They are beginning to work earlier and staying longer. We now have four generations of women from diverse backgrounds and cultures with unique sets of experiences and values interacting daily with one another.
And while this is happening, there seems to be very little sharing between women of different ages. Stories go untold, knowledge from experience is never shared, and timeless perspectives are lost. I believe we all lose when this happens. It becomes too easy to discount and judge rather than to relate and understand. The answer to this is to alter our behaviors to promote cross-generational dialogues.
At Aunt Edith's birthday party, my 28-year-old daughter, Eve, sat with Edith and discussed politics. Edith referenced FDR as my daughter listened to history being retold. My daughter then told Edith about www.myspace.com and how it will influence the youth vote. Edith was a bit confused at first, but interested. Their worlds joined when they spoke about what it means to vote in the next election. Edith's stories conveyed her pride in the right to vote, while helping Eve realize that this right is something that women didn't always have. Women sharing and learning across generations--what a gift for them both!
Read part two for more thoughts about and ideas for dialogues between women. |
| |
|
| |
|
| | | | | | | | | I would like to tell you about a change that affects this newsletter, and I'm excited to tell you about the new Novations enewsletter you will start receiving in the coming months. | |
|
| |
| |
|
| | "Gave us real life examples why this is important." | – Session Participant | Manager |
|
|
|
| |
Log In
Printer Friendly Version
back to top
Learn More about Honoring Differences® Diversity Calendar
Buy Now
