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How are women like flowers? Beautiful? Charming?

Maybe they are beautiful and charming. However, it is also because they grow. They flourish and bloom, unlike anyone, they bloom from being stepped on. They are the embodiment of perseverance and determination. They persevere to have equality. They are determined to change how society views their capabilities. They are flowers that bloom for the light of change for the better.

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OPEN BOOK

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Created by Franchesca D. Lagatao

As a woman myself, I am here to share my experience about this topic. There are times that I experienced discrimination from other people. They always say "you're only a girl, you can't do man things such as sports". At first, I always get confused every time I received that sentence because what's wrong if we try to do things or activities that they treat only for men. They belittle us if they witnessed those actions which prove that there's always favoritism in the world. It's hard to accept that people have a mindset in things like "It's not for women" and "You can't do that because it's only for men" or they call it as gender stereotypes because I believe that we have the right to do what we love and be confident about it. It's just that we can't do it freely because of the opinions of many.

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As time passes by, I realized that it was just a waste of time to be affected by those irrelevant words from other people. It's good to focus and prove to ourselves that we can do everything as long as we're happy with the things we do. We don't need others to label us just to feed their ego. We should be unbothered about it and continue to fight for our rights because we deserve to be treated fairly at all times.

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Created by Reinier Joshua Nace

I'm here to share my experience, not as a woman, since I'm not but about how I see the women around me deal with the oppressions they experience. Throughout my life, my mother has always taken care of me. From when I was a kid until now. But why am I saying this? It is because I always see how capable of a person my mother is. I could say that she can do anything. She can sew, she can joke, she can help you fix your torn pants, and she can help you with your assignment even if she is also having a hard time. However, those are simple tasks. On the hard one, that not all people can do. She can sacrifice. Not on a cult concept. She can sacrifice things that she has so that we, with my brother, will have this. If the food on the table is not enough for all of us, she will not eat so her children can eat. If her siblings have so much debt that they can't pay it off by themselves and ask for help from her, she will help them even if it means she will be the one to pay for it. If you were having a hard time getting yourself back on track because of a specific problem, she will help you too even if it means you dumping the problems on her. That is what my mother has done. That's not all but you would be bored if I mention it all here. My mother has always helped those people around her even though she knows that helping them would consume her. And that is why I do not believe in those statements saying "Women are not capable. Women should only be a housewife. Women can't do what men can. Women are nothing. Women can't lead." And so many more. Those thinking are utterly pathetic and very old. We are already in 2023 it's already "Gasgas".

 

So what I'm saying is that, if my mother can be so capable in a lot of things even with the people surrounding her not believing her, you can be like that too. It may not be the same as her but you have your own way. You are you, and in you, I believe.