Mothers Day and beyond

There was a lot in the news about Mothers last week. Of course some of it is because of the annual Mothers Day but some was related to work and mothers—that fine balancing act.

In the May 7th issue of Macleans there was an interview with Kate Fillion author of The Feminine Mistake. In the interview with Leslie Bennett, she argues that all women should work outside the home. She speaks of women's dependence upon men and how many times they are left stranded economically and emotionally because the partnership ends due to divorce, death or the man's loss of job to name three things.

Another piece about motherhood and work came in last Friday's Globe when Barbara Moses, a professional on career management wrote about the difficulties of the working mother. In many instances, Moses writes mothering and working have become extreme sports.

Fillion was very definite in her approach and certainly offered some compelling reasons for working outside the home but I did find that Moses ended by pointing out that each scenario is different and women (and men). She writes that women need to realise for themselves that "There is no perfect answer. I can't expect to have it all or feel great about everything in my life but I've thought about my options and this is what I choose and what is right now."

Whatever the answers are for individuals and families, both these articles reflect the ongoing debate/discussion of conflicted moms in our society.