Women Can Do Everything, So Will We? Cokie Roberts Rings In

Just returned from a wonderful luncheon at the Tampa Convention Center hosted by the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with WUSF Public Broadcasting (and ticket courtesy of a terrific artist who appeared in skirt! Tampa Bay magazine last July - thanks, Katy!)

And as always, what I love most about these networking events, I got the chance to interact with some very interesting people at my table (happy to meet you, Lonnie and Michelle ~ nice talking with you, Doug!) but the reason for all of this hub-bub, the day's guest speaker, author and Emmy-winning journalist, Cokie Roberts.

She spoke about the victories and disappointments women have experienced on the path to achieve equality in politics, business and society in general. She's recently updated and re-released her book We Are Our Mother's Daughters, celebrating its 10th anniversary, updated to reflect recent events including last fall's presidential election and in particular, sexism's role in the treatment of Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin respectively. (She took some questions about this and other subjects and signed books following the luncheon.)

One person in the audience brought up an observation which Roberts concurred with - a mixed reaction to younger women's lack of knowledge about or respect for women's earlier struggles for equality - happy because gender becoming a non-issue should be the ultimate goal (young girls shouldn't pause at the thought of going into fire rescue or running for President because they don't feel they can fill the role...they should feel confident that they can be anything, anybody). At the same time, there's some anger and disappointment that younger generations of women might not appreciate what pain and danger other women before them experienced to help society evolve or to spur what progress HAS been made.

I must admit, that while I'm in no way the young woman I know they refer to, even as an almost-forty-year-old, I will say that I never felt that I couldn't do something because of my gender. I've never felt bound by my chromosomes or restricted in any way other than by my capabilities or economic situation.

I truly believe that it's more than our neighbors that influence this. It starts at home. Though my dad for much of my childhood was the primary breadwinner, as I became a teenager, my parents owned a business together and it was great for me to see Mom in a different role beyond caretaker or homemaker. My father also has been one of the most supportive men I know - besides my husband, of course! - and always communicated to me how smart he thought I was and how much he believed in me. Still does. (Yep, that's me below in my favorite empowering purple dress.)

I'm so lucky to have him as a dad and I really believe that his confidence in me (and of course Mom's, too) has provided that extra boost I needed to take chances sometimes when maybe my more conservative, logical side would otherwise tell me to stick with the safer route.

I'd love to hear from other women out there reading this. Can you think back to a time where you really stepped back and thought or even said to yourself, 'I can't do that because I'm a woman?' If so, tell me about it. If not, why do you think that thought hasn't entered your head?

Dads, would love to hear from you, too, especially if you have daughters of your own.