Should our women work or stay at home?

I just wanted to share a recent article from Business insider, for some good thinking:

Here's Proof That Working Mothers Spend More Just To Have A Career

Full-time employment may be driving mothers to spend, according to the latest Consumer Expenditure Survey released by the U.S. Dept. of Labor. 

Not only do working mothers spend more on childcare expenses compared to their unemployed counterparts ($6,864 vs. $2,962), they spend more on eating out ($3,092 vs. $2,606) and on household maintenance and repairs ($3,427 vs. to $2,300). 

The Bureau also found that working mothers shell out more for transpiration and car repairs ($3,094 compared to $2,652), because they're clearly commuters. The only place where things evened out among both groups was at the dry cleaners, where working mothers spend a mere $8 more than unemployed mothers. 

While most working parents would agree that having a career puts a real time-constraint on being a parent, the findings prove that America still has a way to go in helping women achieve some semblance of financial stability. Still, experts remain divided on how to best solve the issue. 

Anne-Marie Slaughter famously argued in the August issue of The Atlantic that an infrastructure should be put in place to help working mothers balance their frenetic home and work lives—on-site child care, working hours that mirror school schedules, satellite offices. On the other end of the spectrum, Will Bonner, author of "Family Fortunes," says the dual-income model should be ditched altogether. In fact, he believes it's making families even poorer. 

"When both family members work, neither works hard enough at his task to succeed," he writes. "If both adult family members are working, it adds to family expenses in terms of child care, transportation, clothing for work, meals, tutoring, and other necessary expenses that come with holding two full-time jobs." 

You could read the article from its source in here 

Some words of wisdom

"Rain in our countries means a great blessed day, but in other countries it means a horrible day! What you see beautiful in your eyes might seem ugly to others. Familiarize yourself on differences."

"Do not rely on the word "they said" in order to judge on people and things: try it yourself, for how many mirages people thought to be gushing water"

"Do not be among the blaming ones today, for tomorrow you could be among the afflicted ones"

"When the bird live, they eat the ants, but when the birds die, the ants eat them. All matters in life can just change in a moment".

"The positive person has endless ideas but the negative person has endless excuses"

A mother talking to her son, with advice - Anonymous

"My dear son,

One day, you will see me old…not logic in my behaviors

When I would reach that day, then, please..

Give me from your time and some or your patience to understand me

When my hand would tremble and food would fall on me

And when I won’t be able to wear my clothes on my own

Then please bear patience with me,

And remember that years passed while I was teaching you what I am not be able to teach you today

I am not pretty anymore, or having a nice smell

Do not blame me and remember all my attempts to make you nice and smelling good while you were a child

Do not laugh at me when you see my ignorance and non-understanding of your generation

But, be my eyes and my brain so that I would catch up with what passed me

I am the one who educated you; I am the one who taught you how to face life

So how can you teach me today what must be and what should not be???

Do not be fed up with my lack of memory, my slow speech and slow thinking when I talk with you

Because my only pleasure during the conversation is just to be with you!

Just help me to achieve what I have a need of

Because I still know what I want!!

When my feet let go of me and fail to take me where I want

Be kind to me and remember that I took your hands so many times so that you could walk

Do not be ashamed to take my hands today, as tomorrow, 

You would be the one seeking who would take your hands

In my current age, know that I am not after life like you do

But, in simplicity, I am waiting for death…so be with me, and do not be against me…

When you remember something from my mistakes, then please know that I only wanted you good

And certainly, the best you could for me now,

Is to forgive my shortcomings, and keep my awrah, may Allah Forgive you and Protect you

Your laughter and smiles make me happy just exactly as when you were young

So do not deprive me from your companionship

I was with you when you were born, so be with me when I would die"..

The above has been translated from Arabic from Anonymous mail chain, I found it very powerful. May Allah Make us Take care of our Parents the proper way, may Allah Make us zuriyah Saliha for our parents, and May Allah Forgive us all our shortcomings towards our dear Parents...

We take so many things for granted, when a simple call of "mommy" would have such an impact on some people.

My Grand Mother Meriem was an orphan. When she married and had her first child, it was a daughter. When her daugher grew up a bit, she called her mom : "mama"..it was her first word...and my Grand Mother cried,,,she cried because she did not know what it was to have a mom and call her "mama"...it left an impact on her, and she still  remembered and described that instant years after her children grew up...may Allah Have Mercy on my Grand Mother, and on all the People who have passed away.

If we succeed to leave behind us children who would remember us and make duas to us after we die, then we would have certainly achieved something important in our life. Let us be thankful to Allah for the children we have, and for having parents who were kind to us, for so many people have been deprived from these blessings.