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On the precipice of promise
Today’s younger generation of women – including my daughter Katie – are entering a gilded age of opportunity.
By Steve ChurmPublished: September 01, 2010
An open letter to my daughter Katie and all of her 20- something contemporaries:
By the time you read this, I will have been the Father of the Bride, having walked you down the aisle and into a new life with a new identity and a last name straight from the Heartland, like your new husband. You will always be a Churm in my book, but soon our name will become the answer to a password confirmation question on some website you visit or loan document you fill out.
So, Mrs. Danielson, I congratulate you. I also worry for you and envy you all in the same breath. I cheer the commitment you have made because it is what we hope for in our children. Your mother and I raised you to chart a course and navigate it with more success than failure, but ever mindful that the journey is filled with both. I worry because that is what fathers with daughters do. It’s instinctual. No matter how strong, athletic and confident you are, fathers always want to shield and protect their little girls. The world is spinning faster and faster and seems less certain by the hour, so it is a father’s lament to worry about his daughter, her happiness and her new family. With my graying hair and bionic joints, I will be no different.
But as I fret and fidget, I also envy you like no one else I know. You and your generation of young women are standing on the precipice of promise and potential. It is the dawning of a gilded age of opportunity, particularly for those of your gender under 40.
Technology, a passion for education and a work ethic that is superior to that of men has opened the door for you at this moment in history. Did you know that more women than men now receive college diplomas? And that women have adapted faster and better to the tectonic shifts in our economy triggered by this costly recession? In fact, Forbes Publisher Rich Karlgaard praised women when he told me that young men have been the most significant casualties of this economy.
“They have failed to embrace change and prepare themselves for new careers,” Karlgaard shared. “Women, however, get it and they are adjusting faster. They simply worry less about change.”
This edition of OC METRO celebrates today’s woman, who has found the energy and passion to combine career with community and still make time to care for her own health and well-being. Entrepreneur Sue Parks, our Power Profile subject on the cover, is the quintessential Orange County woman. She tirelessly connected the dots to become an influencer and change agent in her chosen circles. She has the confidence and humility to move agendas and impact lives. She is a role model, Katie, for you and your generation. Her story can be yours. Dream it, see it and then do it.
When you were younger, on those long rides to volleyball or soccer matches, we talked (OK, I talked too much) about not being afraid to make a mistake. Remember? “I can accept failure. Everyone fails at something. What I can’t accept is not trying.” As you take flight as Mrs. Danielson, trust your instincts, take chances and act like you own it – even when your knees are knocking with uncertainty. Now is your time. The table is set for you and so many of your contemporaries. Besides, after surviving the wedding, it’ll be a piece of cake. Don’t be a stranger.
Love, from your No. 1 fan. schurm@churmmedia.com
Get headlines in your hand at OCMETRO.com/apps
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By the time you read this, I will have been the Father of the Bride, having walked you down the aisle and into a new life with a new identity and a last name straight from the Heartland, like your new husband. You will always be a Churm in my book, but soon our name will become the answer to a password confirmation question on some website you visit or loan document you fill out. So, Mrs. Danielson, I congratulate you. I also worry for you and envy you all in the same breath. I cheer the commitment you have made because it is what we hope for in our children. Your mother and I raised you to chart a course and navigate it with more success than failure, but ever mindful that the journey is filled with both. I worry because that is what fathers with daughters do. It’s instinctual. No matter how strong, athletic and confident you are, fathers always want to shield and protect their little girls. The world is spinning faster and faster and seems less certain by the hour, so it is a father’s lament to worry about his daughter, her happiness and her new family. With my graying hair and bionic joints, I will be no different. But as I fret and fidget, I also envy you like no one else I know. You and your generation of young women are standing on the precipice of promise and potential. It is the dawning of a gilded age of opportunity, particularly for those of your gender under 40. Technology, a passion for education and a work ethic that is superior to that of men has opened the door for you at this moment in history. Did you know that more women than men now receive college diplomas? And that women have adapted faster and better to the tectonic shifts in our economy triggered by this costly recession? In fact, Forbes Publisher Rich Karlgaard praised women when he told me that young men have been the most significant casualties of this economy. “They have failed to embrace change and prepare themselves for new careers,” Karlgaard shared. “Women, however, get it and they are adjusting faster. They simply worry less about change.” This edition of OC METRO celebrates today’s woman, who has found the energy and passion to combine career with community and still make time to care for her own health and well-being. Entrepreneur Sue Parks, our Power Profile subject on the cover, is the quintessential Orange County woman. She tirelessly connected the dots to become an influencer and change agent in her chosen circles. She has the confidence and humility to move agendas and impact lives. She is a role model, Katie, for you and your generation. Her story can be yours. Dream it, see it and then do it. When you were younger, on those long rides to volleyball or soccer matches, we talked (OK, I talked too much) about not being afraid to make a mistake. Remember? “I can accept failure. Everyone fails at something. What I can’t accept is not trying.” As you take flight as Mrs. Danielson, trust your instincts, take chances and act like you own it – even when your knees are knocking with uncertainty. Now is your time. The table is set for you and so many of your contemporaries. Besides, after surviving the wedding, it’ll be a piece of cake. Don’t be a stranger. Love, from your No. 1 fan. schurm@churmmedia.com Get headlines in your hand at OCMETRO.com/apps |
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