When I grow up...

I am currently reading ‘Raising girls’ by Gisela Preuschoff in which she mentions the inequalities that still exist in this supposed enlightened 21st century. Apparently in 2003, only 8.8% of executive management positions in Australia were held by women. Granted this statistic is nearly 10 years old, but I can not see it having moved anywhere near the 50% mark in that time.

I started thinking about what sort of future lay ahead for the short one…what ambitions she may strive to achieve…what aspirations, we as parents, hold for her…what qualities, we as a family, hope to impart and nurture.

I would hope that the short one continues to blossom into an independent, caring, nurturing, confident and intelligent young lady. I would hope that she has life goals and strives to meet them. I would hope that she embraces her strengths, as well as her weaknesses. I would hope that she celebrates a life of love, security and resilience. I would hope that she will be happy.

With this in mind, I asked the short one today the age-old question, ‘What would you like to be when you grow up?’

There was a distinct pause in the conversation, so I gently prompted by suggesting a raft of potential career choices, being ever so careful not to select only female stereotypical professions…a firefighter, a police officer, a doctor, a nurse, a teacher, a computer fixer, a mechanic…

Clearly, I was way off track. Each suggestion was met with a very definitive, ‘No.’

What does she want to be when she grows up…

A butterfly, of course!