Picture this…It is Good Friday and I have yet to find an outfit to wear on Easter Sunday. My entire Saturday is booked and if I do not find a complete outfit I will be wearing a t-shirt, jeans, and a pair of fashionable yet previously worn shoes, which any woman knows is a true fashion “don’t”. I scurry the blocks of Newbury in search for the perfect brown dress, which I find at BCBG, and red pumps to all be brought together by custom earrings of Chandler Jewelry.
The mental picture of my complete ensemble looks grim as I have no success finding a pair of red peak toe pumps to complete the look. I had already asked my jewelry designer to create a pair of red and gold earrings to match the items that I was certain to find on Newbury. To my dismay, after five and a half hours of shopping, it begins to rain and the one pair of perfect red pumps were sold out in my size. Tired and frustrated I retreat home and sulk as I am forced to wear the Bronze pumps with brown trim that I had purchased months prior, unable to make the fashion statement that I sought out to make.
It is a great thing to be a woman! We can exude strength and beauty without effort. Although I believe in political equality between men and women, I definitely believe the sexes differ in many areas. Consequently, I find humor in the many nuances of the average woman. Women are the sex with the higher cell phone bill and, yes, we have more shoes than there are days in a month, but that is all a part of our giving nature and should be graciously received by all.
Why is it that my cell phone bill is always more expensive than my brother’s or boyfriend’s bill? Last night I called a friend to tell him that I would be in town next week but when I hang up I saw the flashing 1:32, letting me know that my call lasted a whole hour and 32 minutes. It does not really take over an hour to tell someone how you are doing, how your day went, and your true purpose for calling. However, as in my case, our conversations seem to linger beyond our purpose or, even worse, we get sidetracked into a different conversation in which we never even discuss our purpose in calling. Then we have to call back later, which becomes another lengthy conversation.
Some people may think that an hour and 32 minutes is not a long time but that is an average call for me. Unfortunately, I have been known to talk for over four hours with one particular friend who now lives in Atlanta. I find it absurd that our phone calls last that long and I am embarrassed to admit, to all of you, that bit of information. However, he and I have agreed to keep our phone calls to a once a week limit since we are unable to control the length of our conversations.
I am not sure what it is about being a woman that compels us to spend more time on the phone. Biology class failed to mention verbosity being embedded in the X chromosome. However, it is definitely in the average woman’s makeup to spend more time on the phone than the average man. When we talk on the phone we share experiences, memories, and knowledge. Although an expensive phone bill seems to be a negative result of talking too much on the phone, I believe it is a beautiful thing for a woman to want to share so much of herself with friends and family.
Whether we are on the phone or not women also love to shop, especially for shoes. A great pair of shoes can speak wonders about a person and since women have so much to say, each pair of shoes needs to tell their own story. Many men criticize women for wanting so many shoes and they do not understand the concept of variety. Nevertheless, our shoes our part of our nature that constitutes sharing and giving. When we, as women, buy shoes we are not thinking solely (no pun intended) of ourselves we are thinking of others. We are deciding what story we would like our shoes to tell you, often trying to find a pair that will articulate an amazing story that has never before been told by any other shoes. Once the story has been told several times, women find it necessary not to bore the audience, therefore setting out to purchase a new pair of shoes to tell an entirely different story. The next time your sister, mother, or female friend sets out to find a new pair of shoes, do not be critical. Rather, welcome her generous spirit as she is on a search for something new to share.
Women have in the past been very misunderstood, which led to much criticism and frustration. However, it is time that everyone understands the nuances of women. It is not our purpose to strain our finances with an expensive cell phone bill or shoe purchase. It is our purpose to give of ourselves through communication by any means and that means communication can also be our shoes. To those of you who misunderstood the purpose of women, I truly hope that you have a newfound appreciation for the women who indulge you with their narratives exhibited through verbal and shoe communication.