What do you do for a living?

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Reetu

17 March, 2010

It was just about four in the evening and my son had returned back from school. As usual I was busy listening to his assessment of the entire day in the school, giving him motherly pointers here and there.

IT WAS just about four in the evening and my son had returned back from school. As usual I was busy listening to his assessment of the entire day in the school, giving him motherly pointers here and there.

We were about to sit for lunch when I received this “Unforgettable Call”. It was from one of the credit card companies. Normally I excuse myself from the calling executive saying that I am not an avid card user and prefer paper money to plastic; unfortunately that call went beyond my usual courtesy refusal.

The executive was too enthusiastic and went on to explain the uses of his credit cards. After about five minutes, when he had exhausted all his knowledge, he politely asked me if he could send his relationship manager for a final meeting and that he wanted some information on my background. Without a further word from me, his first question- “Mam, where do you work?” When I replied that I am not working presently, he furthered the conversation by asking – “Oh! So you are into some kind of your own business activities.”

My negative reply on the same seemed to hit him hard. Promptly, with a clear hint of surprise in his voice he enquired, “Excuse me Mam, what do you do for a living?” I was a bit taken aback by his googly and could muster up to say that I am a homemaker.
The call ended there but it took me into a flashback. When I left my job because of a shift in base due to my husband’s job and to take care of my only son, I thought it to be my best decision. I prioritized my family over those eleven years of hard work, efforts, recognition and money. And I was proud of it.

When we came to Bangalore, I came across many women who have chosen to go the same way as I did, with some of them looking at the situation optimistically while some others cynically. As the time extended on, so did my interaction with other women. But irrespective of the type of occasion, place or gathering the first question after the customary formalities would be –“Are you working?” And out of the lot, the group suddenly broke up into two categories- working & non-working.

The working women would end up discussing their hectic schedules, daycare problem and job profiles whereas the non-working ended up citing reasons for leaving their respective jobs/ not working etc...... My mind then flickered back to an invitation, I had received to be a part of a Women forum, and to my utter dismay I found that to be a member it was mandatory to fill in “Where do you work?” You need to be a working professional to be a part of a forum. Honestly I felt humiliated and strange. With this I landed hard on the same question- “What do you do for a living?”

As I struggled with my internal debates, I felt myself shaking fervently … my son had finished his lunch and was trying to bring me out of my reverie. He had his report card in his hand was reading out his grades and comments from his teacher. A look at his report and I got the answer to the question looming large in my mind….

My Job… very arduous, very rewarding…

Working hours - 365 days a year, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day
Job requirements … Sharp, alert, affectionate, caring, creative, imaginative etc etc etc.

Job profile…. Shaping an entire future, Building up a personality, Crafting the citizen of tomorrow.

I am a MOTHER.