Nostalgia, The Days of Yore As A Working Mother and Governor Palin
By NancyA on August 30, 2008 at 10:15 AM in Current Affairs
Today the Florida Democrats released a comment about Governor Palin that just set my blood to boiling. They compared her to Dan Quayle…already with the negative waves, driving a further wedge between me and the Democratic Party. To be honest it just reminds me of the deafening silence when Hillary was bashed with unashamedly and blatant sexism. Who do those Florida Democrats think they are?
I must firmly disagree with their comparison because there are rather blatant differences There are three very strong differences between them. She is an accomplished woman and mother, she has been a mayor and now governor of the State of Alaska.
I can’t pretend to understand what it is like to be a mayor or even a governor while raising children, I do understand what it takes to raise children while being a working mother. I was a working mother in a very stressful job field, I was an active duty Electronics Technician in the United States Navy. A career I chose to undertake without trepidation and fear, knowing one day I would raise a family.
I had two children in pretty quick succession, while on shore duty, they are only a year apart. Six months after having my second child, I was reassigned to a new duty station. This time I was sent to the USS Yellowstone (AD-41), a destroyer tender. My duties consisted of more than just driving to the ship everyday and home again. Every 4 days I was required to remain on board ship, carrying a gun while walking the many decks, ensuring the safety of the ship and my shipmates.
We were often deployed in between major deployments for short periods of time. One of those times we were sent to Mayport to stand in for their ship that deployed to the Mediterranean. Those were long weeks without my children and very expensive telephone bills. I was fortunate that my mother lived in my home, she took care of my children in my absence. I knew that the kids were often confused about who “Mommy” was but always delighted when I returned home.
My first major deployment came in August, 1985. It was a Mediterranean Cruise, six months long. I still remember standing on the weather decks waving goodbye to my 2 and 3 year old children, hoping they truly understood why I had to leave. In the middle of the cruise my son was injured and required surgery. My heart ached because “mommy” couldn’t be there to hold him and comfort him. I had a job to do and made a commitment to do my job. My return home was to lots of hugs and kisses from my children, my son wasn’t quite sure I was his mother. We cleared that up in short order.
Later on after completing nearly 4 years on board ship I was transferred off the ship to Mayport, FL, this time unaccompanied by my husband. He was assigned to a submarine base in Connecticut. I was essentially a single parent. I decided I really wanted to advance in rank and make the Navy my career field. I took on another responsibility, I enrolled in college. I was going to finish the degree I had started before enlisting in the Navy.
After sometime I divorced, later remarrying another sailor (we are still married today….20 years next year). We still had to learn to coordinate efforts between our various duty assignments and my college classes. It wasn’t always great….when my husband went on his first major deployment during the first Gulf War on board the USS Forrestal, our daughter suffered severe gastric disturbances. We removed many foods from her diet and put them back in her diet, no change. Finally after two months and letters from “Dad”, she recovered, much to our amazement. Our son always a reticent child withdrew more, he missed his “Dad”. We worked it out and we had a really wonderful homecoming.
I worked in a “male” world while in the Navy but fought for equal rights. I was a trailblazer for the so many women who followed in my footsteps. I became Surface Warfare Qualified, which meant I knew about all ships and etc…. Sarah Palin has too. She is one of a handful of women governors. She is a working mother with five children, one of them enlisted in the military, bound for Iraq in the fall…she shows her patriotism and bravery by offering one of her own to keep us safe. She stood strong when she found her fifth child would have Down’s Syndrome (I remember when they put children with Down Syndrome in special homes, hiding them away from polite company), and her son is alive today. She doesn’t hide him away, she showed him off for the world to see yesterday. Governor Palin is every mother or woman today.
She understands the demands that so many face today. She works like the rest of us. She governs a state, not so large, yet she has championed ethics reform. She is an avid hunter. She came from humble beginnings, a PTA member…..I remember those days. Governor Palin is a working mother like so many other women have to be today, the only difference is she is a governor! But the one thing she will never be is Dan Quayle…..Keep up the good work Governor Palin!
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