Impacting the life of a girl...

In my last blog I spoke of how men can have an immense impact on the boys around them. I want to speak about the impact of women on the lives of girls. Like boys, at as young as age 3, girls look to a female role model in their life. Usually, this is the mother, but it can also be another relative, close friend of the family or teacher. I do not to repeat my blog on the influence of men on young boys, but there are some elements that are the same and some that are very different.

In a similar way to boys, girls are impacted by women in their lives, especially from 4th grade through graduation from high school. Their impact, however, is often geared to how a woman should be and how they live their faith. This is the same for boys, but more focused on how they should act. I am not referring to how a woman should be a good mother and wife, although those are important - just as being a good father and husband should be something the boys see as well. I am referring more to how a woman is a vital and part of every element of life. When I was young, it was almost expected that the father would go out and work and the mother would stay home caring for the kids and being a homemaker. The role of women in the world, however, has been and most certainly is much more than that. I don't think girls see this as their 'place' in the world anymore, but I do think that girls, like boys, often question what is the place and impact women are to have in the world. Other women around girls can have an impact on them even if they are simply seen by the children. For example, if a young woman wears a very provocative or even immodest outfit to get the attention of young men, girls can think that this is how they should dress and how they should act.

Women can have in very positive impact on girls just as men can on boys. If a woman is a leader in a parish organization and becomes involved in guiding the church in growing as a faith community, girls see this. They want to get involved and they see how they can be involved in the future of the church. If a female parishioner exhibits a deep trust in God then this will influence the girls to develop a similar relationship with God. If a female teacher or close friend asks a girl if she ever thought of being a religious sister or nun then this opens up that possibility to the young girl. Again, just like the boys, women can impact the lives of girls without even knowing it. How they act, what they do and the way in which they live their life everyday is a witness to girls as to how to be good Catholics.

I will be on the Priest Convocation retreat at Conception Seminary from Monday afternoon through Thursday. It'll be interesting to return to my alma mater and see the monks. I'll give you the low down when I return. Until next time...God bless.

posted by: crossman at 05:40 | link | comments (2) |
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