Before World War II, working Moms were definitely in the minority. Perhaps this is why families enjoyed home-cooked meals with a freshly baked pie or cake every now and then. Mom was completely in charge of the appearance and smooth operation of her turf. Granted, women didn’t enjoy the many conveniences and appliances we have today. Wash was done on a washboard with a manually operated wringer attachment, and clothes were dried on the clothesline. Television wasn’t in the household and Mom was busy from morning ’til night. This all changed during the second World War. Women began taking jobs in factories to support the war effort. Today, most Moms are working Moms. With all the gadgets, appliances, machines and vehicles, what’s changed? Not much. Most Moms still work from morning ’til night.
Although you may see a TV segment showing the ‘new’ household task structure, with a cheerful husband who not only takes out the trash, but shares some of the other household tasks, I suspect this is not the norm. Ask any woman!
So what’s the deal? Many household tasks are still considered ‘woman’s work’ that any self-respecting husband can’t bring himself to do without a nagging feeling of unmanliness creeping into his psyche. This is indeed unfortunate for the working Moms of the world.
In the days when women ran their households exclusive of an outside job, while the man was the breadwinner, the home environment could look just like it did on ?Father Knows Best?, ?Leave it to Beaver? and other such family icons. The cleanliness, order and overall wonderfulness of such well kept homes were what every woman strove to provide her family.
Today, the working Mom’s home does not resemble these paragons of antiquity. We have reality TV shows where a professional organizer comes in and helps Mom organize her life, obviously in sore need of such attention. Documentaries follow the daily life of average families. The first thing you learn is that a clean and well organized home is not to be found. Kids are rousted at the crack of dawn to catch the school bus. Your working Mom is up way before the crack of dawn so her family can just get up and go. Then she goes to the paid workplace. She runs around to take the kids to various activities and sports events, along with errands ranging from dropping off the dry cleaning to returning library books. All of these tasks are accomplished after work, on weekends or during lunch breaks.
Mom no longer has the satisfaction of making a cake or sewing a dress. She gets a frozen cake and shops the discount stores for clothes.
The point here is that working Moms, for the most part, have not gained in personal quality of lifestyle, or satisfaction. Given the choice, what woman would choose to do two jobs? So go give your working Mom a big hug and kiss!
