I don't believe in coincidences. I was born in a family of all girls (four) and gave birth to three more, all praise is due to God. My journey to understanding and embracing my womanhood has been a long and evolving one. I've gone from wishing I was a boy while growing up (for more freedoms and less housework) to a fashion slave jockeying for women's rights (What was I thinking?) to a career woman (travel reporter) to a typical housewife (cooking/cleaning, babies and dinner parties) to finally who I am now.
I am eons away from who I aspire to be but am overjoyed that I have finally found a direction, goal and template, God willing. The inspiration for my latest (and hopefully final) reinvention comes from a book that had been sitting unread on my shelf since my college days:
The Position of Women From the Viewpoint of Imam Khomeini. Imam Khomeini's explanation of God's vision for his female creation is awe-inspiring and invigorating. It is illustrated by certain women in history who were able to perfect their beings as told 1400 years ago by Prophet Muhammad (S): "Four women are the mistresses of the worlds: Maryam (mother of Jesus), Asiya (foster mother of Moses), Khadija (wife of Muhammad (S)), and Fatima (daughter of Muhammad (S))."
As people of all religions, cultures and awaken to the injustices being committed around the world, the thoughts of this architect of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 are most poignant and worth pondering, especially for those of us in estrogen-dominated families. (Don't ask me how many female cousins, aunts, and nieces I have!)
March 2011
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Video about ThePerfectionistas blog in the local media.
