“Strength and honour are her clothing; and she
shall rejoice in time to come.”—Proverbs 31:25 (KJV)
The Lady in Proverbs 31
This paragon
of virtue may seem like an unrealistic ideal to some of us. It’s easy to wonder
how anyone can be so perfect. Here’s a summary of her traits:
Virtuous
|
Strong
|
Honorable
|
Prized above rubies
|
Charitable
|
Excellent wife and mother
|
Hard working
|
Good Seamstress
|
Trustworthy
|
To me, she
conjures up the stay-at-home mother portrayed on 1950s TV whose hair and
make-up is flawless. She did housework in high heels, pearls, and her best
dress. But that’s not all! She also solved her family’s problems and cooked
three-course meals every day.
I’m thinking, “Really?”, as I see such women
in re-runs. “The producers of similar shows wouldn’t want to see what I look
like when I cook, clean and garden.”
Do such peerless
females exist? Some scholars say Solomon, the main writer of the Book of
Proverbs, may have been describing his own mother.
The subject
of the passage isn’t nearly as important as the message. The underlying meaning
to me is not necessarily that women must be perfect. A deeper theme is that
women keep everything regarding the home flowing and functioning. They’re often the foundation of the household.
The influence of mothers should not be underestimated.
Modern
Examples of Strength
Today, I’m
beginning a series of at least three articles about disregarded people. They all
broke numerous barriers. If my examples
are mainly women, transpose them onto any undervalued group or individual. The
remainder of this writing will concentrate on two female sports figures.
Babe Didrikson Zaharias (June 1911-September 1956)
This
powerhouse began as a track and field athlete. She won two gold medals in the
1932 Summer Olympics. Those were the days before celebrity endorsements and
talk shows. Her success in amateur sports didn’t help her pay the bills.
Didrikson
was a woman of many talents. She created a one-woman Vaudeville (variety) show
in which she played a harmonica. The performance was only a limited sensation.
Once the novelty wore off, the public lost interest.
Babe again
re-invented herself. Golf was a popular sport. Professional golfers were
respected and well paid. The athlete didn’t know much about the game, but she was a
quick learner.
The problem was that the sport was dominated by
men—unsurprisingly. That didn’t deter the champion. Babe was a founding member
of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA). She won 10 championships in
the league. Not bad for a lady who didn’t know much about the game at first!
Billie Jean King (b. Nov. 1943)
This amazing lady is the former top
professional female tennis player. She won 39 grand-slam titles. She is still looked
upon as a role model by stars of the sport, such as the Williams sisters. King
has also been a consistent advocate for gender equality and social justice.
The athlete’s
most notable accomplishment remains winning “The Battle
of the Sexes” against
Bobbie Riggs. It was the most memorable tennis competition of the century, held
in 1973. King’s success was a huge step forward for equal treatment among genders. Until that time, female tennis pros had been making thousands of
dollars less than their male counterparts.
By the early
70s, the 29-year-old King was already a polished tennis champion. Riggs, the challenger,
was a 55-year-old self-styled chauvinist. He believed that a woman couldn’t
beat him under any circumstances. Billie
Jean showed the guy with the toupée (I think) and the “Women belong in the
kitchen!” attitude how much he had to learn.
My Conclusion
“Champions keep playing until they get it
right.”—Billie Jean King
********************
“It’s not just enough to swing at the
ball. You’ve got to loosen your girdle and really let the ball have it.”—Babe Didrikson
Zaharias
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How are you breaking man-made
barriers to your success?
