hxe@rayssd.UUCP (Heather Emanuel) (10/15/85)
There seems to be some doubt about what Ginger's original question
was; i.e., was she saying "what makes you feel feminine and what
makes you feel masculine?" or was she saying "women, what makes you
feel feminine?" and "men, what makes you feel masculine?" I interpreted
it as meaning the latter, especially since she answered her own
question only for the feminine side.
I already answered the "feminine" question, with some pretty
stereotypical examples. I was a little surprised as they came out,
because I usually rail against such stereotypes. However, I did try
to 'qualify' them by explaining the reasoning behind them. That
was, in essence, that I do all those things as a *reaction* to
feeling particularly "feminine" that day, not to *make* me feel
feminine.
Reading the other responses, I've seen a slight difference in slant,
if you will, in the answers. I distinguish (just semantics here,
and my own) between "feeling feminine" and "feeling like a woman."
"Feeling feminine" is all those frilly things that it's nice to pamper
yourself with once in a while. And I'm glad I have the 'freedom' to
still do them. I would never have done all that in my activist days
of the seventies because we were making a statement and we couldn't
afford to compromise it.
"Feeling like a woman," on the other hand, is an empowering sensation
for me. I feel like a woman when I'm being domestic - washing
dishes, moving furniture, hanging pictures - making a 'nest'. I feel
like a woman when I'm in the middle of doing those things and I'm
wearing old jeans and a flannel shirt and my hair is pinned loosely
up in the back and someone comes over and I feel attractive, like I
exude strength and capability. I feel like a woman when I'm
"nurturing" - providing first aid, comfort, an ear, a shoulder, an
insight. I feel like a woman when I'm "mothering" children - tying
shoes, helping with 'potty', feeding, rocking, etc. Strangely, I
don't feel as "womanish" when I'm playing with kids; then I just
feel like me playing with kids. My mothering even extends to my car;
I felt like a woman this weekend when I changed the oil in my car
for the first time all by myself.
I guess I should say that I'm a double Taurus and I pretty much
embody the "earth mother" image. My primary urges, much as I try to
deny them, are to make a nest and to nurture, and that's when I feel
like a woman. And it feels powerful. And I like it. I just wish
others would respect that power.
--
--Heather Emanuel {allegra, decvax!brunix, linus, raybed2} rayssd!hxe
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't think my company *has* an opinion, so the ones in this
article are obviously my own.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
"Ain't life a brook...
Sometimes I feel just like a polished stone" -Ferron