My girlfriend always sleeps on the wall side of the double bed: If a murderer comes by at night, he’ll flatten her boyfriend first, she says. Pretty uncool for a woman in the 21st century. We can do more! To remind her, I recently texted her with a stranger’s phone number: “Beautiful woman, I know that you sleep on the wall side, but it’s also not without risk…” That was mean, but I could guess that she was in Panic immediately calls the police and terminates my friendship after my confession?
I think we women are easily able to protect our men. And not the other way around. We are strong because we show profile in everyday life. Don’t listen to other people’s gossip and treat ourselves to a new nose or a toned stomach instead of whining and hoarding season tickets for gyms you’ll never see inside. That’s strong! Or to show courage and dare to go into a freaky comic shop for the sake of your friend and talk shop with salespeople in Tintin hoodies about the wondrous world of Panini stickers.
The question arises as to whether men even notice that women are showing strength. My husband says a woman is strong when she can clearly say what she wants and doesn’t want. But that doesn’t mean that he wants to hear clearly how unpleasant I find it that he fills his plate to the brim at every buffet. At the bottom of their hearts, men find women strong who, like our hot crime scene inspectors, don’t let their butter be taken from their job and who, with their tough minds and short skirts, have their colleagues and the criminal pack under control. Only at home should they show their soft and cuddly side.
Perhaps it is sometimes a sign of strength not to apply male standards and to decide for yourself what moves you forward. This also includes correcting a wrong decision or meekly making amends for a stupidity. You can see that you shouldn’t scare your girlfriend with a fake killer SMS and apologize with an invitation to all-you-can-eat sushi. Yes, I did that and just saved the friendship. And she forgave me. A strong number, by the way.
The actual heroic deeds happen in silence and are not that difficult. You openly tell your mother-in-law that you will never wear the gauntlets you have crocheted and put an end to years of hypocrisy; you apply for a pilot’s license instead of continuing to dream of it; you slam the resignation on the annoying boss and start with your first own fashion collection. Courage to gap! You don’t have to adopt six children, win the Eurovision Song Contest and – caution, exaggerated strength – forego the major TV event of the year, William and Kate’s wedding.
A woman is one of the strong even if she doesn’t have a gold medal dangling around her neck at the end of the day and no world record in hammer throwing has been set. Speaking of hammers. My husband always sleeps on the wall side and is more concerned about the burglar who would get a beating from me than he is about me. Rightly so.
