Role models

We all have people we admire, look up to, wish we were like, or seek to emulate. At every stage of life it is comforting to see others succeed where we think we might fail and to see how they overcame. My early role models were Annie Oakley, Ann Sothern, and Annette Funicello. Oh, and Jesus, my mother, and Sandy, our neighbor who was six years older than me. Annie had great skills – she could ride and shoot, Ann had a sense of place with a great office and a comfortable apartment, and Annette was the nice Jill-of-all-trades. As a ‘tween I shifted to Nancy Drew who was surrounded by supportive people and had adventures that included a hint of danger.


Right out of college I met some wonderful women. Robin had taken a man’s job in manufacturing during WW II and fought to keep it when the men returned from the war. She was among the first women to go through training in the Episcopal Church to assist at services, including giving communion. She saved and bought a pretty little blue house and drove a yellow Carmen Gaia. Lydia worked downtown and had a husband whose job had him travelling around the world and who brought her home treasures as well as the little liquor bottles from the airlines. Cinda battled cancer, raised two children, and was a global citizen.


In the Mary Tyler Moore era I was expecting to make it to the glass ceiling within Illinois Bell as I worked my way up the management ladder. I had my sights set on Division Manager. There was one woman who had made it that high and she and I could look eye-to-eye. The best boss I ever had was a woman who gave me great advice on getting ahead and she too believed it was our time to move up.


Do we ever outgrow looking for role models? Somewhere along the way we look at the early ones and either strip away things we really don’t like or even turn away from them altogether. But, even now I meet some free spirit, someone who has a contented full life and half-joking say or think ‘I want to be her when I grow up’ or ‘I want his life.


When I think about it, those people have a few things in common. They are lifelong learners. They accept and enjoy who they are and readily share that person and what they know. They are generous in other ways. While I might not agree with how they go about it, they care about a greater good and have a sense of responsibility to do something.


I realize that a constant through the phases of my life has been appreciating female authors. From Louisa May Alcott to Louise Penny these women have been trailblazers for stories. I don’t know how much they or any of the other real and fictional people have actually influenced my character, outlook, or even success, but I am grateful for the experience of knowing them personally or from afar.


If you had to make a similar list of role models, who would be on it?
Marilyn