Is This Reality?

Amber from “Teen Moms” gains celebrity for fighting with her boyfriend and waging war against him using her own little girl.  The ladies (trust me, I’m using that term very loosely) of “Housewives of New York City” hold celebrity status for spreading vicious rumors about each other, whining non-stop, sabotaging one another’s businesses, and even occasionally threatening their friends with bodily harm. The Kardashians portray a world in which the only thing that matters is image – even at the cost of true character.  Snooki and JWoww have lives focused solely on their current boyfriend or hook-up. Maybe you enjoy watching these reality shows (they are sometimes good for a laugh)... or maybe you don’t. I’m not judging these people or those who follow their lives. I’ve been known to get drawn into a marathon of “Say Yes To The Dress” and have laughed hysterically at the ridiculous, childish, downright mean, and sometimes legitimately “cray cray” antics of these women. In many cases, the worse character traits they represent, the more fun they are to watch (and the more famous they become). But whether you watch them or not, it is difficult to avoid their disturbing portrayal of today’s woman.

It all makes me wonder…in whose reality do these women truly exist?

The women of reality TV are nothing like the real women that I have known. The women I know are intelligent, strong, confident, independent, funny, and compassionate.  They are women who are focused on improving their minds through education or building their own businesses and careers. They are women who honor the responsibility of parenting and who also respect the wisdom of older generations. They are women who can create things of beauty, who bring passion to the world, and who share tremendous amounts of humor – sometimes even in the face of great pain. They support each other and encourage one another to be better. They show up when needed. These are the women that I’ve known. These are the women of my reality.

When I was growing up, TV brought me role models of what a woman can and could be. From Marlo Thomas on “That Girl” to Mary Tyler Moore – these women were smart, funny, caring, and making their lives matter. However, I think it is difficult today for young girls to find such role models on TV. And in fact, it is practically impossible for young girls today to completely avoid the outrageous stories about reality celebrity’s misadventures…and their resulting "idolized" status. It is so important for women of all ages to prove to the youngest generations what it is to be a real woman. I encourage you to take a moment today to help a young girl see what a real woman is.

It’s OK for Amber and LuAnne to live on our tv’s…as long as their behaviors don’t live in our homes.  It’s OK for us to laugh about Snooki and Kim... as long as we pay tribute to the true “reality” of women. 

We are not what the media and reality TV shows would like us to believe. We are better than that.

“Here's to Good Women…
May we be them...

May we know them…
May we raise them.”