Over the past few days, I’ve spent a lot of time by myself exploring who I am, what I believe and where I want to go in the future. Part of that exploration has been watching movies about powerful women. These woman inspired me and made me want to be a better, more kinder human being. I want to share with you the stories of the two women featured in the movies I watched and share how each of them moved me.
The Iron Lady
The Iron Lady is the story of Margaret Thatcher, the first and only Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Margaret Thatcher was a woman that dreamed of more. She was the daughter of a shop keeper and a housewife. From a very young age, Margaret was very intelligent and witnessed the horrible acts of war. She grew up wanting more out of life and even attended Oxford University, a very prestigious college. Trained as a chemist and later as an attorney, Thatcher had aspirations for something bigger – politics.
Thatcher lost her first election, but kept reaching for her dream. She eventually made it to Parliament and even held a seat in the front bench (which is a pretty big deal). The fact that she was a woman immediately changed the game for the political scene. The men felt like her ideas were not good enough and she definitely had an uphill battle to fight. She became Education Secretary prior to being elected Prime Minister and where she served for 11 years. During her time in office, many say it was tumultuous and marked with unrest. While it may have been, Margaret Thatcher was deemed as one of the most important people of the 20th century. She was inspiring (to me) in the way she felt about how government should be a part of one’s life.
“I think we have gone through a period when too many children and people have been given to understand “I have a problem, it is the Government’s job to cope with it!” or “I have a problem, I will go and get a grant to cope with it!” “I am homeless, the Government must house me!” and so they are casting their problems on society and who is society? There is no such thing! There are individual men and women and there are families and no government can do anything except through people and people look to themselves first. It is our duty to look after ourselves and then also to help look after our neighbour and life is a reciprocal business and people have got the entitlements too much in mind without the obligations.”
“Interview for Woman’s Own (‘no such thing as society’) with journalist Douglas Keay”. Margaret Thatcher Foundation. 23 September 1987. Retrieved 10 April 2007.
Becoming
Becoming is the book written by Michelle Obama and the documentary about her book tour. I haven’t read the book yet but the documentary was so incredibly moving. To see where Michelle Obama came from and where she is now is magical. She started off on the south side of Chicago and eventually made her way to Princeton and then onto Harvard. That’s where she met her husband, who we know as the former President of the United States.
What I found interesting about her story was her passion to stand out or at the very least stand next to her husband throughout the whole campaign and presidency. Early on, Michelle knew that if she wasn’t careful she would become hidden behind her husband due to the stature. But as the campaign went on and she became more in the public eye, people started to notice and make comments that were hurtful and somewhat untrue. Instead of hearing her words, they would look at her and how she was holding herself. That’s when Michelle started to realize if she didn’t hold herself at the highest standard, she would always be looked down upon.
She took this as fuel and used it to light a fire in her. Michelle Obama was a stand-out woman in every sense of the word and one that inspired many other women in this country. Throughout her book tour, Michelle would hold community events with younger, college aged women and would speak to each of them about their fears, their wants, their goals and dreams and how to handle some of the negativity that gets thrown at them. It was beautiful to watch. What was also beautiful to see was just how humble she is. Michelle seems to hold that old statement don’t forget where you came from to be true and I can appreciate that very much.
What do these women have to do with one another?
They are both women that knew where they wanted to take their lives from a very young age. They are both women that had an idea, or a dream, of what they wanted their lives to look like. They both were strong willed (some say almost too strong willed). They both inspired generations to take charge of their lives and make changes in this world. . .for the better.
Both of these movies made me think about my life and how different it looked. At an early age, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do but I don’t recall wanting to change the world. I also see how I’ve kind of floundered in life and just floated and coasted most of the time. Mainly because I never really had a vision for where I wanted to take my life. But at the same time, these women also inspired me. Margaret and Michelle are both powerful, strong women that made changes in this world and in an age that’s dealing with lots of change, I think their stories are helping women understand that they can do anything they set their mind to. Women are strong, women are capable and women are powerful.
We need to use our power to make serious change in the world. Use our voices so we’re heard. Use our dollars to show what products and services we want and what laws we want passed. Use our hearts to show how much we care for those around us. Next time you’re on social media, instead of leaving a negative comment on someone’s post, leave a positive one that will support that woman. Together as women, we should be lifting each other up, motivating and inspiring each other and helping out our fellow sisters when we see a need. ❤️
What are your thoughts on these women and how have they inspired you?