Commentaries | Sep 18,2021
Aug 6 , 2022
By Carolyn Kissane
As the rainy season gets wetter, accompanied by heavier rain showers, it is not unusual to see folks with umbrellas. Little do they know that how we respond to rain defines our personality. People who stand and wait for the rain to pass are patient, reserved and risk takers. Those of us who prefer to walk in the rain as opposed to waiting for it to pass are impulsive, impatient and a bit adventurous.
I do not have the patience to stand and wait for the rain to stop unless it is raining sleet or my hair is done. These days, it does not really stop. One might as well buckle up and march on or otherwise cancel plans. An umbrella helps.
Most people who carry umbrellas are women. Men, especially those younger, are not fond of umbrellas, so they would rather get drenched or wait in the shade somewhere. I saw this meme a while ago that attributes holding an umbrella to being feminine. Some men make fun of other members of their sex for having umbrellas.
The other day, I spotted a guy walking in front of me with a pink umbrella. I wondered what made him buy that specific colour. He was very young. As if he read my mind, he picked up his phone and started talking about how he had to take some lady’s umbrella from the office as the rain will not stop.
How many people saw him with a pink umbrella and thought it was weird? I do not see how holding an umbrella makes a man appear feminine. Who made it an accessory exclusive to women?
Instead of focusing on what a man should be, we focus on petty stuff that does not contribute to society. I agree that there are certain things that I, too, think are better left for women as in the plucking of eyebrows, manicures and pedicures, but an umbrella is a common item.
It reminds me of the time I went to visit a friend at her mother’s house. The younger son in the family was helping out with setting up the table and cleaning up afterwards. The mom did not look happy. She told him to leave it alone and she would do it. Nonetheless, a few minutes earlier, she was complaining about how tired she was of making food and cleaning the house all day. But the boy offers to help and she turns him down. This boy is going to grow up thinking women do not really need help running the house.
We should let men take charge, encourage them to participate in such tasks at a young age and stop calling them names when they step up to help. I saw this video where a man was talking about his parents.
“I remember when I was eight years old, I opened the door for this lady and my mom complimented me and talked about it for weeks about what a gentleman I was,” he said. “Until this day, I remember that incident. My mother used to encourage me every time I did something nice to someone and focused on building my character as opposed to just checking my grades. Parents these days don’t really care about that as long as their children are getting good grades. But manners are also important.”
It is up to us to teach our boys what it means to be a man; a protector. We should not let them get caught up in being a “macho” bereft of feelings. We need gentlemen to make the world a better and safer place to live for both women and men.
PUBLISHED ON
Aug 06,2022 [ VOL
23 , NO
1162]
Commentaries | Sep 18,2021
Films Review | Jul 06,2019
Radar | Dec 28,2019
Fortune News | Apr 17,2021
Agenda | Oct 30,2021
Fortune News | May 25,2019
Agenda | Sep 22,2024
View From Arada | Jun 11,2022
Viewpoints | Jan 03,2021
Life Matters | Jul 27,2019
My Opinion | 121222 Views | Aug 14,2021
My Opinion | 117326 Views | Aug 21,2021
My Opinion | 116030 Views | Sep 10,2021
My Opinion | 113738 Views | Aug 07,2021
Commentaries | Jan 18,2025
Agenda | Jan 19,2025
Dec 22 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW
Charged with transforming colossal state-owned enterprises into modern and competitiv...
Aug 18 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Although predictable Yonas Zerihun's job in the ride-hailing service is not immune to...
Jul 28 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW
Unhabitual, perhaps too many, Samuel Gebreyohannes, 38, used to occasionally enjoy a couple of beers at breakfast. However, he recently swit...
Jul 13 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Investors who rely on tractors, trucks, and field vehicles for commuting, transporting commodities, and f...
Jan 18 , 2025
Adanech Abebie, the mayor of Addis Abeba, addressed last week a warm-up session for h...
A severe cash shortage squeezes the economy, and the deposit-to-loan ratio has slumpe...
Jan 4 , 2025
Time seldom passes without prompting reflection, and the dawn of 2025 should nudge Et...
Dec 28 , 2024
On a flight between Juba and Addis Abeba, Stefan Dercon, a professor of economic poli...
Jan 19 , 2025
The looming scarcity of essential imported materials has overshadowed traditional wea...
Jan 19 , 2025 . By AKSAH ITALO
The family of the late Hailu Shawel, a civil engineer and a prominent opposition lead...
Jan 19 , 2025 . By AKSAH ITALO
The edible oil industry is on the brink of collapse, with the number of fully operati...
Jan 19 , 2025 . By AKSAH ITALO
Pharmaceutical manufacturers have underperformed, failing to deliver 4.1 billion Br w...
Loading your updates...