When Ron Paul expressed the importance of making the choice available for mothers to homeschool their children in a recent Morning Joe interview on MSNBC, guest host Katty Kay asked, “Do we actually want to encourage women to not take part in the workforce?”
By asking that, she degraded the occupation of stay-at-home moms.
Whether they choose to work outside the home or stay at home to care for their children, mothers deserve our respect.
If money and elite occupations define success, then I guess stay-at-home moms do hurt the reputation of women. True success is so much more, and mothers have a much greater and more rewarding type of power: the power to influence the world one child at a time.
If we define success by money, mothers do enough to make $113,586 a year on average, according to a survey conducted by Salary.com of more than 6,000 mothers. They gathered the number of hours moms spent doing various tasks such as cooking, cleaning and chauffeuring.
Motherhood is evidently a full-time job in itself.
On top of this, mothers have the power to positively or negatively impact society as a whole by the influence they have on their children.
According to the National Institute of Justice, parental abuse or neglect drastically increases adolescents’ likelihood of committing crime, suffering from post-traumatic stress and becoming dependent on drugs or alcohol.
In the same way, parental support and encouragement have lasting effects on children, often giving them a sense of security and high self-esteem.
But studies are not needed to prove this point. We all know the effects of our moms words and actions on our lives.
As much as I don’t like to admit it, my mother usually does know best. My mom was the valedictorian of her high school and graduated from LSU. She could be successful in the workplace, but I believe she has made an even greater impact simply by being there for my siblings and me.
She spent time with me individually as a young child and taught me to read and write by the time I was 4 years old. She encouraged my creativity and nurtured my love for reading, writing and art. Cliché as it may sound, I would not be the person I am today without her support. As a mother, she has made many sacrifices, but she would say it was worth it.
Some believe that such self-sacrifice is deprecating to women and that they should not give up their independence and rights. But women who choose to sacrifice for their families should be honored, not reprimanded.
After all, successful and committed relationships are not about independence; they are about love. I’m not talking about selfish, touchy-feely love, but the self-sacrificing attitude toward another person, which seeks the best for the other.
This type of love — a mother’s love — is worthy of honor.
For some mothers, this love means working two jobs to put food on the table. For others, it means sacrificing a higher household income and some personal freedom in order to personally raise and care for their children in the way they see best.
Mothers have a priceless impact on the world, and whether they go to work or stay at home, they deserve our honor and respect.
Christine Guttery is a 20-year-old English junior from Baton Rouge.