The Toughest Job

A few years ago, I and my friend were discussing or rather complaining about our jobs to each other. She had worked since her teenage years as a Freelance Anchor and TV Host and now had taken up a 9 to 5 Job, which was not working out for her. When I asked why she had made the career switch, as now she is only making half of what she used to and has to work four times more, she replied that she needs the security and a stable income.

To me it was not the best choice I would have made at that age for myself, if I was in her shoes. Working four to eight days and making enough money to sponsor my own trips to Europe every month would have been the perfect career. I was adamant in my argument and persuaded her to move back to Freelancing and she kept defending her move giving reasons of drawbacks of the glamour world and other factors such as age. My final point of argument was that she can pursue Freelance Anchoring till the time she gets to that age and then get married. With her next statement she brought the argument to an end and my final point became the last, she replied “Being a Housewife is a Luxury I can’t ever afford”.

I still hold my argument that Freelancing is a better choice than a 9 to 5 job, as it gives you the liberty to do a lot more. Her statement did not win her the argument, but made me deviate from it.

Is being a house wife really a Luxury?

I do not consider so. From the observations I have made, being a Housewife looks like a full time job. With multiple roles to play, she is not just a Wife, a Mother and a Daughter in Law, but also a Cook, a Maid, a Nanny, a Teacher, a Waiter, a Nurse, a Counsellor and much more.

She doesn’t get to take a leave on public and bank holidays, even on family vocations she performs her duties. So the next time you ask a Housewife what she does all day, think twice as you might be intruding in her busy work schedule.

I say being a housewife is a job a man cannot execute.

9th May, 2012