Here’s one for the boys…

So this week international women day happened, and as anyone who knows me knows, I am very much an independent woman. I grew up in a household of sisters and have a mother who can pretty much do anything she sets her mind too. For all of this I am eternally grateful for the women around us who everyday encourage us to be even stronger and independent than we were the day before. And I acknowledge that we will stand together and fight until all women can have what I have been lucky enough to experience.

But today I would like to give a little shout out to the boys that have been grouped together. The men who have been stereotyped and stigmatised because of the other men who make stupid life decisions. So for the boys that I love, this ones for you.

There’s a bit of a stigma,
An expectation, assumptions.
That you all get what you want,
Because you’re a man.

But I know you struggle too.
I know you too have industries,
Aspirations, that are not,
What some call gender friendly.

You get emotional, like us,
Yet its seen as weak.
You get looked down on, like us,
Because you want to be a nurse, like us a lawyer.

You want to be the stay at home dad,
Whilst your wife is out their slaying it.
You go ahead, wear that baby carrier with pride,
Whilst you cheer us from the sidelines.

But don’t let them punish you for that.
Fight for your paternity pay.
Defend your manhood, it’s a hard life,
Kids are harder than adults (though sometimes questionable).

But too all of you boys,
Old and young,
I want to say thank you.

We would not be here,
celebrating womanhood,
If some of you a long time ago
Hadn’t made us fight for it.

And we wouldn’t be here,
Living the awesome lives we do,
Without you standing by our sides,
Cheering us on.

So this one is for you,
Your own little man’s day.
I know all of you good ones,
Have a bad rep from the bad ones.
But I will always know,

That my best friends in life,
Some of the few people that have made me who I am
Are men,

and I am damn proud to admit that.

Dear 2018

I would like you to be kind,
I know you have to fight your corner,
And make me fight for mine,
But at least give me warning when the whole world

Is about to collapse.
Because 2017 didn’t do that.
2017 built me up to my absolute best,
And within 2 weeks it crashed me down

Again, and be fun.
Please 2018, let me explore
Life and land like 2017 hinted towards.
Let me meet new friends, new lovers

Bring me joy.
For 2018, I would like 2018 moments.
Moments for smiles, laughter
And pure bliss.

I want to achieve,
2018, I want you to be my year,
Scrap that, I want you to be our year,
As we deserve it.

We have all had shit days,
Shit months even, but we can change that.
Let’s have a little optimism,
Lets open that door up,
Open a window too.

Let in that air, that fresh air,
That wave of opportunity.
And if it doesn’t come flowing,
Storm through that door yourself and grab it.

Because this year I learned life is too short.
And you have heard that before,
And I have heard it too,
but I was forced to learn it in 2017.

So come on 2018,
Hit me with all you’ve got,
I’m ready, my arms are outstretched
And I’m going to grab hold of every little piece of you.

Heres to all of us, and heres to a good year.
And if 2017 ended,
or 2018 started poorly,
don’t let it get you down.

Learn from misery, mistakes and loneliness.
Learn from having every little piece of you ache
from constantly trying to hold others up
whilst juggling your own life.

And whilst I know you will all still juggle
and weight-lift, as I am bound to too,
take a little moment.

Go for a walk.
Breathe in the air
and love the ones you love.

As no-one deserves
to have a day of their lives go by,
where their main emotion is sadness.

Enjoy, Embrace and have a safe 2018!