Feeling Compleat?

I’ve read a couple of reviews of The Compleat Woman, 20 years after this portrait of woman who ‘had it all’ was written. Valerie Grove selected women with high flying careers, three or more children and who had stayed married for 25 years plus - a pretty tall order. It makes me look at my life, partly in a ‘how do I match up’ kind of way, but also assesssing ‘what do I want from life’? I think one of the questions asked by the book, ‘can she have it all’ is still pretty relevant today. My answer is no: even those women who think they have it all are missing out on some stuff.

I made a choice more than five years ago to work for myself. It means that my income is less reliable, but I’m more in control of my time. I really value the time I can create in my life to watch the waves rolling up into our garden, the time to watch my kids grow. That sort of time has to fit into ‘having it all’ somewhere.