Women: We Have a Voice, Use It!

You know what really irks me? This idea that women are suppose to be seen and not heard. This idea that we are there for men’s pleasure, but God forbid we have a voice. We are minimized to being put in the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant. If we have careers then we are a bad mother because we belong at home raising kids. If we stay at home then we are lazy or not putting our hopes and dreams first. If we gain too much weight we are fat and need to exercise, if we are skinny we need to eat a burger. If we wear makeup we are trying too hard, if we don’t wear makeup we are letting ourselves go. Women cannot win. We just can’t.

Working in EMS I had the not-so-much of a pleasure working with one of these men who views women as less than. His exact words to me were “Women don’t belong in EMS, they are too sensitive, too emotional, and too weak.” Sir, have you ever pushed a child out of your body? No? Too sensitive and too weak my ass! You were brought into the world by a woman enduring many hours of pain! How dare you disrespect one! Times have changed. Women belong where ever the heck they want to be! Women have rights. If we want to stay single and slay alone, that’s our right. If we want to have careers and children, we can. We don’t live in the dark ages anymore!

I don’t know about all men, but most men want a female partner on an ambulance. They want a female when a woman is giving birth, they want a female when a woman has been assaulted or raped. They want a female when there is a call involving a child, because most women have a strong maternal side. Women may be sensitve and emotional, sure, but that comes in handy on the ambulance because of our compassion.

I recently had someone tell me my husband “lets” be do this or that. No, my husband doesn’t “let” me do anything. My husband doesn’t control me. My husband doesn’t own me. I am not his property. He doesn’t keep me on a leash. Oh the horror, I know. I am my own person, with my own experiences, thoughts, opinions, and yes, feelings. I have a voice, I am allowed to use it! I can use my voice for good or bad, that choice is mine. I am allowed to write about my experiences. I am allowed to put my thoughts and my feelings out there. All women are. We are allowed to be loud women! We are allowed to be heard! We are allowed to take up space!

I will never be one of those women that submit to my husband. I will never be one of those women waiting on him hand and foot. I will never be a woman to ask for permission! I don’t need permission to speak. I don’t need permission to be heard. I don’t need permission to be seen and to take up space. What I have to say matters. Jordan has heard one too many times “control your woman”, he can’t and he knows it. He can request, he can ask, but it’s never a demand and what I do with his request is completely up to me. Most times out of respect for my husband I follow his wishes, but I know I don’t have to. I have a choice. I respect my husband, I love my husband, but I am not my husband’s puppet nor would he ever want me to be.

My husband has told me many times one of the things he loves about me is that I don’t let others control me, my strength and my courage, and the ability I have to fight for the people I love. I am a fighter when I see injustice. I fight for what is right, for what is deserved. I fight for my son to get him the services he deserves for his autism. I fight for my patients to make sure their voices are heard and they get the treatment they deserve. I fight for the people who haven’t found their voice yet. I fight for the people in my life being hurt by others. I fight.

I will never be a woman that sits down and shuts up. That isn’t me. Women, we have a voice, use it! Speak your truth. Speak your story. Speak your hopes and dreams into being. Speak up! Women are a lot more powerful than we think. We let these men, these people living in the dark ages, we let them fool us into thinking we are the weaker sex, but they wouldn’t be here without us. We matter more than we think. This world wouldn’t be if it weren’t for women. Our homes wouldn’t be if it weren’t for women. I know if I were to go away for a week I would come home and the house just might be burned down, but at the very least it would be a dysfunctional mess. Do not let people fool you, we are powerful, and it’s time we use that power for good. You have a voice, USE IT!