The appreciations of the value of being a housewife, when she’d become, temporarily, unemployed here, until the shoe’s on the other foot…translated…
Turns Out, What She’d Been Preparing, it’s NOT Just for the Sake of Her Habits, My Father-in-Law’s Preferences, for the Sake of Her Families’ Meals, But the Focal Point of Her, Life……………
From before, I couldn’t understand, why my mother-in-law was so insistent on making the meals at home every single day. Based off of what I’d learned, because when they were younger, they have this workshop that they’d run and operated, and hired the apprentices to work, and every day, the meal plans are, the most basic, and, her habits of cooking the meals, started back then. Later, they’d stopped operating the workshop, and my mother-in-law still insisted on making the meals by the day, the reason was that my father-in-law couldn’t get used to the foods outside.
that music video from Lonestar, off of YouTube…
Then, even later, my mother-in-law’s health started, ailing, and still, she’d gone to the local marketplaces to shop for the groceries, carried the heavy-as-hell groceries around the markets, as she’d trekked with great difficulty. So many times I’d gone back home to visit, I’d, consoled with her hard as I could, that they should buy their meals out, that she didn’t need to prepare every single meal of the days herself. But my mother-in-law uses an assortment of excuses why they shouldn’t, and continued to make the three meals regularly daily. She’s already, drained herself completely, and so, why is she, giving herself an even, harder time, I still, can’t, understand it.
Until recently, I’d finished up my work, and in the means of temporarily being unemployed, I’d started, cooking the meals regularly too, and for many days on end, I was, at home, making the suppers, in front of that broiling pot of bubbly curry, that’s slowly cooking on, I’d, suddenly understood where my mother-in-law, was, coming, from. Turned out, she wasn’t, cooking just out of, habits, nor my father-in-law’s preferences, the stomachs of the loved ones, but the focal point in her, life.
During the time when I was unemployed, where do I, anchor myself down, so I don’t, get lost in the sea of life? We all have to become, reproductive somewhat, to gain the meanings of our, lives, to set up how our lives, should, be. Recalled how my mother-in-law worked almost all of her life as a keeper of the house, the home was her, workplace, and the delicious meals she’d prepared on the tables, were, her work, and all of this, was what became definitive of her life, the place she found the self-affirmations she needed.
Like how the pot of curry that’s before me right now, although, my son gave me the menus before he went out, but it’d, driven me, who’s currently unemployed to go shopping at the marketplace, carried that huge load of heavy-as-hell potatoes and carrots too, held back my tears as I’d chopped the onions up, slow-cooking everything inside this, pot, waiting for a pot of curry to become, ready to eat. It is, truly, tiresome. But, as the aromatic curry filled my home, I’d, known, that what I’d managed to satisfy, wasn’t just, my son’s requests, but, moreover, I’d, offered up what I was able to, give for the day, to those that I love. I’d, made a, pot of, curry, a huge mission, I’d not spent my day today, in vain.
illustration from UDN.com
The moment I’d looked upon that pot of curry, I’d, finally come to understand, why my mother-in-law was more than willing to, carry her own tiredness, and still, made the three meals for her loved ones a day. That was, the self-affirmations she’d needed, the values she’d, offered, such grand kind of self-worth it is. I see it now, I understand it too, I truly hope, that my mother-in-law can see her contributions, and affirms herself for it.
But, it’s, quite, unlikely that this woman’s mother-in-law will affirm herself for the meals she’d prepared from scratch for her families, because the worth of stay-at-home parents are, usually, undervalued, we are taken for granted, because we aren’t making the dollars on that check, bringing home the bread or the bacon, we’re just, sitting on our large (it’s actually NOT that huge by the way!!!) ASSES, doing nothing at home all day, or so, at least that’s, what all of you, with your god damn nine-to-fives think, when you think of the population of us, who are, staying-at-home, as housewives, and maybe, that’s why, most of us women in modern day world would, rather work out of the families (beside that one paycheck can’t pay for everything the family needs!), than to become, labeled as, “unproductive housewives” who stays at home all day long, doing nothing (you wanna BET???), and just sips at those afternoon teas, drinking our coffees, with our legs up, resting…
The Ivory Tower of My Mind 