Provide and Protect

two more "P" words to define

I started this Substack adventure quite a while ago with a list of words that began with the letter P. Don’t ask me why I did that, but as you have grown to know me a little, you see that I fly by the seat of my pants most of the time. I still have my favorite from that original list and that is “pusillanimous” which just rolls off the tongue so smoothly. But for some reason these other two “P” words have been haunting me lately. I think it is because I heard something on the radio about it being the man’s purpose to protect and provide for his family. I cannot imagine what I was listening to but from whatever source, I have been thinking about those words ever since.

I just did a little research and the phrase seems to have biblical roots and is tied in with the patriarchal nature of most societies. It rang in my head again when the shocking disparity between the salaries to be paid to the first round choices of the WNBA versus the NBA were disclosed. And then I remembered that many years ago I found out that a man in my same position was making quite a bit more than I was, so I went to HR to question it. I was told that it was because he had a wife and family to support. At the time I was the sole support of my daughter, so that excuse hardly rang true to me. I was making enough to support her at the time and didn’t dare make too much of a fuss for fear of losing my job. Obviously, the man in question was also making enough to support his family without having to pay extra for childcare as I did. Wow, amazing the memories that surface when you start down one of these rabbit holes. Perhaps the purpose of this Sunday rant is to call out the fact that we really haven’t come a very long way yet. The effect of money and power in our lives continues to rule just about every decision.

On a much happier note, I had a delicious breakfast with 8-month-old grandson who delights in everything around him. I will take a leaf out of his book and know that the world will continue and we’ll sort out the current mess eventually. All of us can contribute to the effort of protecting our planet and providing the best outcome possible for all forms of life.