Day 334: My mother grew up in the days when working women were suspected of something, like there must have been an ulterior motive, that they couldn’t simply need to earn money. She always told me how lucky she was to work at her parents’ store, because then being a working girl wasn’t so frowned upon.
Whenever she felt the need to warn me to stand up for myself in all situations, she would tell me the same story, about being assigned to help the butcher in the meat section of the store. The butcher had a reputation for being handsy, so she usually made a point of avoiding him. That day, as they stood at the large butcher block island, wrapping meat, he kept bumping into her. Every time, she would move away. Every time, he would move closer. Then he grabbed her shoulder and pulled her closer, and she spun away from him, but he didn’t give up.
She said, “He chased me around that butcher block. I was afraid, and he thought it was funny. When he laughed at me, it made me mad. So, I stopped running from him to show him I wasn’t afraid. I told him he had no right to touch me and that if he ever did it again, I would defend myself with whatever was closest. Right by my hand on the block was one of the large knives. I nodded at it. He stepped away from me. Then I told him that if he treated any of us clerks that way again, I would make sure he was fired. He never bothered any of us after that. I told my dad what had happened and he probably said something to him. I don’t think I was menacing enough to stop him on my own. But you never know.
Always stand up for yourself, Honey. If you don’t want to be touched, say so, and if it takes a slap across the face to be taken seriously, then do it. When you have a job, do it to the best of your ability, and don’t let anyone else’s monkey business stop you from doing your best.”
Her story has come to mind many times through my working years, and it still rings true today. Don’t let anyone else’s monkey business stop you from doing your best.
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