Freedom. What is it good for?

Watching Steve McQueen shelter his distraught wife's face from the scene of a grisly murder in the 1968 movie called, "Bullitt", made me grimace with disgust. Throughout the movie I had noticed the difference in the portrayal of women, compared to today, 42 years later.  Women were indeed treated as the weaker sex.
I feel like I am entering into "old fogey" territory when I remember a time when it was unusual for a woman to have a full-blown powerhouse career outside of the home - it was a time when prepared food was made by your mom.
It was a time when women were delicate little things and wore clothing suitable for delicate little things. It was a time when young women weren't too excited about their career choices because really, marriage was going to take over one's life, anyhow.
If women went too far in assuming their equal place in the corporate and business world and went running and screaming from the world of household cleansers and new and improved vacuum cleaners, it's no wonder. But in retrospect, wouldn't it have been a good idea to study the liberation process to see how society would change? As women resentful of being held back pushed through the glass ceilings, men became resentful of women gaining power and winning jobs just because they were women.
And I wonder if young girls today appreciate the ping-pong lifestyle that 40-and 50-something females are facing: the examples set for us were a far cry from what was expected of us, but we struggle to maintain the perfect relationship, be an outstanding parent, keep a home ship-shape, remember everyone's birthday, send home-made soup to friends who are ill, volunteer and effect change in our communities, and have a stellar career.
Modern women are supposed to move in the fast lane with men all while we are wearing skirts and heels.
But the bottom line really is that there are problems for both men and women in our consumer-driven world.
As both wage-earners in a household immerse themselves in the work world, home life and the caring environment may be falling by the wayside. Family meals are difficult to schedule. Daytime work hours are sliding through supper-time and into evenings. All volunteering must be done evenings and weekends, cutting into what was previously family time. There are few stay-at-home partners available to attend day-time volunteer gatherings and for that matter, few volunteer groups meet during the daytime any more: everyone is at work.
It seems to me that there has to be a better way. I know I am not alone when I face the daily struggle of disconnecting from work and reclaiming personal time.
I don't know what that better way is just yet. It would be interesting to see where we are four decades from now. Will we work shorter work weeks? And will we use extra personal time to grow our own food and use our own skills and our own hands to provide or create what we need - instead of working to buy all that we need?
Men and women alike deserve liberation from the pressures of keeping up and competing with each other.
It is almost as if the main result of so-called liberation was increasing the disposable income of the family unit and making sure that the busy-ness level was such that everything the household needed had to be purchased.
While the movies are just a glimpse into societal values of the past, there were always the exceptions: the strong female characters that inspired us.
And so perhaps it is up to all of us to reclaim our individuality and inspire those around us.
Perhaps our modern pioneers will voyage into a new world where quality of life, renewed family connections and community will assume their rightful place as priorities.
Now that would be a liberation to celebrate.