I have worked hard, received a stellar education
I am enthusiastic about my vocation
I am ambitious, I want to take
My career to greater heights, I want to make
The best of my education and training, I do
My determination and hard work should carry me through..
*
But wait, mid-thirties I have reached now
I want to start a family, but the contemplation of how
I accomplish this while keeping my career growth in view
Gives me serious stress, straining me in multiple ways too..
After help from science and prayers I finally conceive
I would work through pregnancy, take a short break, I believe
And be back at my workplace, in my previous capacity
Little do I know what destiny has planned for me…
*
After the ordeal of a difficult pregnancy and childbirth
I am forced to take a break from work, of course my family is worth
All the sacrifices at workplace I have to make
Once I go back, much effort it should not take
For me to get into the groove, do what I used to do
Turns out here I am totally off the mark too
*
When I try to return, my break from work is viewed as a flaw
As if by having a child I have broken a law
I find work with great difficulty, in a much lower capacity
Moving ahead in my career is a distant dream for me
Work dinners and travel are not in the cards
With a baby, though I am working twice as hard
Thus all opportunities for promotion are denied to me
I still brave snide remarks on not making work my foremost priority..
*
The workplace remains a place for men
As women we are tired of asking when
Between raising a family and building a career we would not
Have to choose, not have to put in that much thought
Into synchronizing biological clocks with career development
And still suffer discrimination, criticism and judgment
We are expected to work as if we have no family
Society expects us to mother and never take our careers seriously
Caught in between expectations, overworked we remain
We have to find a better solution than going through all this pain!
Passion...unbridled 