The Power of A PURSE is Powerful Indeed!

Do you have any idea what I've been up to?  I'll tell you.  Along with the other members of the Greater Raleigh/Durham chapter of Mothers & More, I've been collecting purses.  This time the collection has nothing to do with my personal penchant for the little darlings.  And we've been collecting items to put in those purses.  I'm sure you'll want to know why and believe me, I'm happy to oblige.

Mothers & More started a national Mothers Day campaign a few years ago as an Advocacy & Outreach project for the local chapters throughout the country to do something especially meaningful for mothers in need in our communities; frequently for women in shelters, but not always.  I wish I knew the full back story - and I will make it a point to find out if anyone is interested, but the important part is that this annual campaign has been very well received throughout the country and the donations have been outstanding.  I believe I heard that last year alone 10,000 purses were collected and donated.  That's right TEN THOUSAND purses - mostly filled with items you might find in your own purse (minus the wadded up tissues and gas station receipts).

Why purses?  Because a purse represents a woman's economic power.  Can you imagine not having your own purse?  I'm not sure about you, but I basically carry the necessities of my everyday life in my handbag and go nowhere without it.  Here's a little sneak peek at the handbags we've collected in just a couple of weeks... believe it or not, there are over 50 handbags there.

Here in the Greater Raleigh/Durham area we're collecting for the women being served by InterAct of Wake County, North Carolina - a non-profit agency that provides safety, support and awareness to victims and survivors of domestic violence and rape/sexual assault.  We aren't stopping with purses though.  We are also asking local businesses to donate food items for a fantabulous Mother's Day Brunch for the women being served by InterAct.  You couldn't ask for a more generous bunch of business owners  - and that's one of the reasons I love living in this area - folks really want to reach out and help other, local folks....especially women....especially if it means empowering women.  But we're not stopping there either!  This year Mothers & More expanded the Power of a Purse program to include The Empowered Purse.  I know, you're waiting with baited breath to hear what that is, right?  Well, I'm getting to it...hold on...


The Empowered Purse is a multi-part program, offered through participating chapters, that allows us, as women, to re-evaluate our financial goals (and believe me, LOTS of chapters are participating around the country)!  A few members in our local chapter learned a surprising thing or two about themselves during Part I of the three part series; we're looking forward to Part II.


More information on Mothers & More, The Power of a Purse and The Empowered Purse can be found at www.mothersandmore.org .  Go on, have a look.  Every mother deserves a little MORE in her own life, don't you think?

Caricatures of Female Intelligence

Late last night I saw a commercial on the television that made me angry.  The premise of the commercial was for parents to encourage their children to eat breakfast - they would perform better in school if breakfast was eaten - and of course something was being sold, a breakfast sandwich, I believe.  My issue wasn't with the premise, or even with the breakfast sandwich being sold.

The scenario went like this - the main character of this commercial was a girl, probably a pre-, or young teen.  She was participating in a spelling bee.  This character, this young girl, was a stereotypical caricature of a geek.  Everything about her was geeky.  Her glasses, clothing, mannerisms, the way her hair was styled, everything about her was geeky.  And that is what made me angry.

It is a known fact, based on many years of scientific study, that girls dumb themselves down in the middle school years to appear less smart as compared to their peers, especially as compared to boys of the same age.  This dumbing down is frequently seen in mathematics and science.  It is also a known fact that women are a minority in the fields of math and science and in fact, there is a great need in those disciplines for more women.   Middle school girls want to fit in, be liked and popular...have boyfriends even.  Being considered, or referred to as geek doesn't help to accomplish these goals.

I personally know of a few highly intelligent teens who admit to dumbing down.  I know of grown women who claim to have dumbed themselves down to better fit in while in middle and high school.  Some mothers  still do this to some degree, unwittingly setting an example for their children.  Being considered too smart is very un-cool for some, especially if being intelligent can land you with the brand of geek.

Intelligent females look and act like everyone else.  Intelligent girls and women look just like the girl next door.  These girls and women ARE the girl next door.   I've yet to meet one who was the stereotypical geeky looking caricature intelligent girls are made out to be.

This commercial particularly bothers me because I am the mother of two highly ambitious, intelligent young women, who at points in their lives have dumbed themselves down to fit in.  One of our daughters told us she just wanted friends, to fit in and be like everyone else, not be smarter than.  In our family we discuss issues like these and explore, through conversation, the ramifications that can happen to personal self-worth, future educational and employment opportunities and self identity when dumbing down happens. It is never a good idea to deny who we are - ever.


Today, I am going to ask each of you reading this to put your own face in this frame.  Put your daughters face in this frame, share the frame and ask other women, young and old to do the same.  Actually see, with your eyes, what an intelligent woman looks like.  Accepting who we are, with all the talents we have is important and caricatures of our intelligence should not be tolerated.

On a final note, I will tell you that when I see that commercial again I'll be paying attention to the name of the company.  I will be calling the president of that company and letting him or her know they are contributing to a great dis-service with our girls who subconsciously, or consciously close open windows and doors to future opportunities.  And I will be asking them stop the caricature of intelligence.  Our future is in our youth owning who they are, with all their gifts and talents.  Our future is in accepting who we are, as women and individuals.  We usually look just like the girl next door.  We are the girl next door, notwithstanding caricatures.