'Being a woman has no rules'

The idea of International Women’s Day is a bit of a newer one for me. I had never even heard of the day before I came to Shawnigan. However, over the last few years, after hearing powerful speeches from different people, when we do celebrate this day, I get to appreciate the women in my life, including myself. 

 

Growing up, I was someone who enjoyed all the things “only boys” should enjoy and often got called a tomboy, or even sometimes entirely mistaken for a boy. It could have been because I had no interest in the traditional girl pastimes, like the stereotypical dolls or colourful eyeshadow palettes. Maybe it was the ratchet haircut I gave myself or perhaps the shopping sprees my father and I went on in the boys’ section of the Gap. I digress. When International Women’s Day rolls around each year I think of my identity as a woman; I think of how being called a boy when I was little always made me mad and how I was labelled before I even knew how to spell my own name.

 

For this International Women’s Day, I would like to emphasize that being a woman has no rules. You can play with dolls, or you can watch Thomas the Tank Engine, you can paint your nails every colour imaginable, or you can shop in the boys' section at the Gap. Being a woman cannot be defined, you make it how you want it. 

 

In the Gathering, we got to hear the different experiences of some amazing women at our school. They each shared their own unique experience being women. From being a role model in sports, being a performer on stage and wearing a blazer with shoulder pads in the best ’80s fashion, or fighting for your basic right to live in equality, these are all aspects of being a woman – being a human. Choosing the speakers for this Gathering was one of the easiest challenges I have had in a while. When I think of strong women that I have in my life, I think of every woman I have had a passing conversation with, every woman who has taught me to love, to live and to be a woman. To honour International Women’s Day, I urge everyone to appreciate the women in our lives. Appreciate them not only because you have to, but because you can. You should appreciate the things they have done, the people they have changed, and the people that they are. Behind every successful woman are the women who came before her.

 

To wrap this up, I would like to thank all the women who have listened to me, spoken up for me, formed me, and allowed me to become the woman I am today, because I am proud of all of you, and I am proud of myself. I would like to especially thank my mom – Hi Mom! Thank you for teaching me patience, composure, and compassion. My love for you is endless. I also would like to thank my second mom – Hi Cho! The work and love that you have put into every kid you have in your House is immeasurable, and the lessons you have taught me will carry on into the rest of my life.