FAST FORWARD 10 YEARS: the juxtaposition of women in leadership, born in 1970 vs. 1980 -sandra mickanen sharing observations
which shares several years in the life of Jacinda Ardern [ born July 1980 ] New Zealand's 40th (and youngest) Prime Minister, Oct 2017 - January 2023
2 things for now until i have more time:
mysterious, spiritual... answered prayer. -prior to sitting down to get lost in some type of story.. tv, movie, podcast.. lots to choose from these days,
but, i always pay attention to what i'm feeling as a result of watching... [variable here]
/and how i feel, about how i'm feeling.. there's always a 2nd layer, but saving that topic for a later date:
i kind of put out a simple prayer: something that inspires and empowers me.. that's how i want to feel as.. and in the after of watching: i want the result of watching -whatever it is- to be that it makes me feel inspired and empowered.
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that simple prayer was directly answered by coming across, and clicking on PRIME MINISTER
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in one word: GLUED. as it was unfolding, my mind was already..
this is my favorite documentary ever... i love this... wow to this.. thank you...
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and i'll return to write more, but..
especially as i've recently read, and am slowly re-reading Melania, the book.. which covers the time period of when Melania was First Lady, the first time.. 2016-2020 ish,
and then, we very recently went and saw the documentary, Melania, which covers only the 20 days leading up to her 2nd time being First Lady..
and while i am inspired and intrigued, and appreciate..
when i reflected on the documentary, i found myself saying/thinking that's like going back in time..
backwards for women...
it's very dated, in this way: much more 'image' focused; brand focused.. looks and fashion at the forefront.. and she is a fashion model, and she is beautiful, and she does use her stilettos as a flex..
nothing wrong about accentuating your gifts; the positive
and she does also have exquisite taste, an education/eye for design, architecture; a heart for helping, a mind and spirit for leadership..
but you can clearly see, from my perspective, born in 1966, that Melania was born in (into)
1970; that puts her receiving and applying the 'cultural messages' prominent in the late 80's, early 90's..following (sometimes setting) the trends of that time; under the influence of popular culture of those decades; what was considered 'valued' 'valuable' -successful, of high status, etc.
what was viewed as strength vs weakness.
but, what is 'missing' if you will, in the documentary, Melania, is any..
well,
best shared this way: everything i found 'missing' in the documentary, Melania,
was present in the documentary, Prime Minister.
-i.e., there was a time when women would not be caught dead without their make-up.. on camera! -forget it.. in public; no way..
women on camera, on public display.. ONLY & EXCLUSIVELY when your hair is styled, your make-up is on, your clothes are dry-cleaned and tailored, your nails and toes are painted, your accessories..
etc.
you saw women at their best or not at all.
but over time, the culture shifted, incrementally, and you'd see less make-up, imperfect hair, casual clothes,
over time, and incrementally, we got to see women -behind the 'what i want you to see' scenes
and started to see them at both their best; and worst; and everything in between.
the whole woman; closer to the truth..
in PRIME MINISTER, we see Jacinda in her professional, leadership role.. dressed for the success, so to speak; as she should be,
but also, in her pajamas, when she should be..
we see her strong; we see her emotional, with make-up, without make-up, confident.. unsure..
navigating several crises;
we see the spectrum of demands..
we see her pregnant; we see her breastfeed; we see her in love; we see her.
that's the point, i guess: we get to see her. not a manufactured, or carefully crafted image.
what feels like, 'the real her' -but to be certain, even this documentary is edited selectively, with personal choices about what to, and not to reveal. what to, and not to include.
and also, to be certain,
each woman -each woman leader- Melania & Jacinda
they are both under the influence of their time; with a decade between them.
what is considered, regarded as 'strong' of their individual time..
at one time, (Melania's time); strength and success were found in creating and mastering a public 'image' -seen at your best or not at all.
my point, is that if Jacinda was born in 1970, and Melania in 1980..
because, current culture, associates 'weakness' with 'image-culture'
now we seem to worship and admire, 'real' -whole, unmasked.. seen at best, worst, and everything in between,
and i do regard this as progress; evolving in the correct direction, as 'real' and 'whole' women
i don't think any of us really want to return to 'be seen at best or not at all'
and there is still an even greater point being made here: how my focus is on 'appearance' -what is seen vs. not seen
i suppose because they're women; and suppose because i'm comparing -visual- documentaries and not books of only text..
but, that layer discussed, shared and pushed back,
we can look at, look more closely at: leading. navigating crisis. lifting, elevating large populations, addressing issues; debating issues; correcting course, maintaining what's great; weeding out what's not working; fighting for worthy causes.. handling multiple adversities, and victories and responsibilities simultaneously
personal and cultural values..
being a woman; wife; mom; sister, aunt, daughter, friend, neighbor, politician, consumer, student, leader, citizen of the world..
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but, highly, highly recommend watching both and experiencing/witnessing the juxtaposition of a woman leader born in 1980 vs. 1970
and, processing, our next leaders from 1990, 2000.. 2010...
more later,
all thank you prayers & tithing.. amen.
posted by SANDRA MICKANEN @ 8:42 AM
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