"As this International Women’s Week comes to a close, Team Courage’s Kristene recalls the lessons she has learnt from the life of one woman who inspires her every day. “As a woman I have no country. As a woman I want no country. As a woman, my country is the whole world.”- Virginia Woolf"
by Kristene Silva Marie
At 19 years of age, a young lady named Nancy got a teaching job at a kindergarten nearby her home in Penang. She was young, obviously uncertain of what the future held but she took that job. She loved it and worked hard at it, taking the highs and the lows in a positive stride. Six years later, she got married and moved across states, to Selangor and started teaching at a kindergarten there. She continued to serve faithfully, until one day she decided it was time to start her own kindergarten.
She did. In the small town of Banting, with the full support of her husband, they finally launched the kindergarten to a booming success. It became quite a renowned establishment in town amongst those with preschool children. Some years later, she launched another in a neighbouring town, and with her husband, they started providing tuition, eventually building an educational institution. This was done all in the midst of a growing family.
Now, why this story? Because Nancy is my mother. And no, it is not Mother’s Day but with the #choosetochallenge theme for International Women’s Day 2021, I could only think of her tenacity in all she did.
Challenging all the “no’s” she has received over the years, I have watched my mother’s faith in God grow as her perseverance resulted in the many ventures she embarked on. Where people were content with the skills they have, she chose to always learn something new even if that meant having to sacrifice some leisure time. I would sometimes wonder if she had more hours in a day than me to do all that she was doing. Meanwhile, I felt like I needed a few more hours of sleep when all I did was go to school and come home.
Watching her my whole life has taught me first and foremost that hard work pays but care and love, perseverance and diligence add value to the work you do. These are some traits that make you satisfied with the life you live.
“A woman is like a tea bag - you can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.“ - Eleanor Roosevelt
In a time where people aim to break spirits and plant negativity in others out of jealousy, my mother chose to encourage and help her peers in their business ventures. In a time when many women chose to stay home and let their husbands be the sole breadwinner, I watched my mother choose the life of a working mother.
The journey she has been on certainly was not one without bumps and potholes but she pushed on. Now at 61, she still lives an active and full life, not missing a beat. Her character of servitude is known in her circle. And while some take advantage of her kindness and readiness to help, most cherish the person she is as she cherishes them.
I guess the reason I am sharing this story is because my mother has taught me that while nothing comes easy in life, the difficulty should not be a reason that stops you from achieving your dream. Maybe if I stopped thinking about “oh, what a good lesson this is” and started doing something about it, I would be writing my next article atop Mount Everest.
To all the strong, capable, loving, fantastic women out there, Happy International Women’s Day to you! Let’s never be afraid to bring change to our world, even if there are age-old norms being practiced, let’s never be afraid to seek constant self-improvement and let’s never think twice about helping and encouraging other women in their journey.
Let’s never stop being kind and gentle, tenacious and passionate, discerning and brilliant. Let’s always be Woman.
“I’m a woman, Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me.”
- Maya Angelou
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