By – Jackie Anderson Christensen
United States – 44-gun frigate (Photo credit: Marion Doss)
The world notices the might of a nation by its military. As the Pentagon stands prepared to lift the ban on women in combat roles, many Americans burst with awe as our President praises the potential change; “Today, every American can be proud that our military will grow even stronger, with our mothers, wives, sisters and daughters playing a greater role in protecting this country we love.”
It appears we are now a nation of people who have a new and different view of what brings us pride. No better place to prove this than on the front lines of the battle field. If so, then the refusal to allow all people to participate in that which makes one great is an injustice indeed. And far be it from the average liberty loving person to disagree with that. How this affects the end result (military victory) is being debated across the country. It cannot be denied that the idea of women on the front lines now exemplify true liberation and empowerment. But liberation from what? The battlefield is the arena that tests a nation’s strength. But what creates it?
It has long been declared that the kitchen embodies the horror of women’s oppression. I’ve heard many flippant remarks to ‘get back in the kitchen!’ ‘Make me a sandwich!’ As though this humiliation would send me to a more acceptable place – perhaps the boardroom, or the bedroom. The effort to belittle traditional roles hasn’t lost its pace or effectiveness.
Feminism (Photo credit: AslanMedia)
The sexual revolution of the 60’s lamented over the ‘oppression’ that came with being grounded in God and family. ‘Limiting’ one’s self to a husband or family was a cursed way to live, so says this modern feminist culture. The many women who choose to devote themselves to family are now a remnant of the indolent. A stubborn sect of women who don’t care to see their full potential. The degrading of these women is a war and battlefield of its own, and in my opinion the only war on women that exists in this country.
Isn’t it true however, that a nations riches are often embedded deep within its very center? Is it not true that the health of the body reflects the health of the organs, and of the organs the cell, and the cell its nucleus? And if so, consider America’s kitchens. It is a kitchen that holds within it a great and subtle power… a woman, a wife, a mother.
The warm hearth of old is now a modern kitchen. Its purpose is by no means just to fill the belly. It is the work of forging bonds that no chains made by industry could similarly do. Within the walls of the kitchen are more than ingredients of Chicken Casserole. It contains the elements of laws beyond the boundaries of human manufacturing; the creative design of human networks like the synapses of the brain that connect us all. A unique and exquisite American fabric. The kitchen is the nucleus that contains the very DNA of Americanism. And we can accurately predict that when this ‘center’ is healthy that its surroundings are as well. It is the control center of what we love the most – family.
Kitchen (Photo credit: deborah|silverbees)
The kitchen is the very place that beckons every holiday, calls for every gathering, influences every bond, and inspires every celebration. It is what happens here that causes most of us to hurry home, whether we are leaving school, work or returning from travels around the world. For the very lucky…there is no place like home.
Great honor should indeed be given to that which protects, but we must remember what it is that we protect. The kitchen is in fact a great natural resource and a great power. And I assert that to possess great power is not to join a great force – but to be needed greatly.
There is no refuting the courage it takes to offer one’s life for their country and perhaps wear the honors and medals on ones breast. But I would not deny the great courage it takes to devote one’s life to a few, and wear only the scorn of a country that has very little regard for it. There is no greater role than one’s dedication to family, which is the center of all things. It is this center, our middle and our embedded jewels that labor in kitchens and homes that give a military its purpose. As for the mothers, wives, sisters and daughters who do just that; I take great pride in them.
JACKIE’S BIO
I a native Texan currently living in the Dallas area. Mother of two, self employed conservative and a recovering feminist. I am now a voice among many in defense of traditional values. I am a lover of Truth, even when it does not flatter me. I believe that liberty is not a complex idea or privilege. I believe in common people, especially kids. Being an American is an exuberating love affair for a conservative, and defending her is not an option.
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Barack Obama, Family, Jackie Anderson Christensen, Kitchen, military, Pentagon, People, politics, texas, United States, women, Women in the military
