I went shopping again today. I often pick the longest line because it gives me time to pray. Unless I forget, which happens all too often. I become distracted by the women’s magazines. They are always there, right at the front, tempting a shopper (who is trying to be good) with the impulse to make a last minute addition to what’s already in the basket. Women’s magazines are never on my list. That doesn’t mean one doesn’t find its way into the plastic bag with whatever was on my list, like eggs and milk and veggies. I stopped buying women’s magazines a while back; not because I wanted to save money, but because they are always the same. Every women’s magazine has a new weight loss program, new recipes, an article on sex (how, where, why, when, with whom), fashion, and some celebrity, usually one who looks anorexic, wears a D or E cup, is air-brushed and gorgeous and has done something to capture media attention – unless she happens to own the magazine and has her picture on the cover every, single month of every year. (Always beautiful, I might add.)
It got me wondering. Are women really only interested in losing weight, having a new and better brownie recipe, finding an updated Kama Sutra, buying the latest fashion? Who decided women should wear six inch ice-pick heels? A misogynistic fashion designer? Podiatrists? I tried some on. I lasted two-minutes, maybe less. I couldn’t figure out which part of my body hurt the most; my feet, hips, back, toes. Not to mention I had to walk with knees bent and arms outstretched. One young woman told me she had to “break in her feet for a year” before she felt comfortable in them. I wonder how she walks when she takes them off.
The women I know are interested in balancing home and career, the challenges of home schooling, the physical, mental and emotional post-trauma of abortion, how to stop sex trafficking, dealing with addictions – from drugs and alcohol to computers and texting, deepening our relationship with God and one another, serving our communities, learning about inspiring people other than the ones we read about every day in every newspaper.
I know there are magazines out there that focus on these things. It’s a pity they aren’t in the front racks of our grocery stores.