RISE, A Modern Guide for the Purpose Driven Woman Spring 2014 | Page 34
written by Lady 6
Female
Warriors
Some people devote their lives
to discovering a truth outside themselves. I am committed to discovering a truth within myself, and
the soul which lies at the heart of it all. My truth is that I
am scared and brave, fragile and indestructible, open and closed,
and I have the ability to exist on several different emotional
planes all at once. I know I many of you may be thinking I
am some sort of female version of Highlander, and as awesome
and fulfilling as that would be for the male reading audience, I
regret to admit that I am nothing special at all. I am a voice
among many, indeterminable against the others.
I stood at attention, approximately 3 feet in front of my Sergeant Major’s desk, and he told me to stand “At Ease”, which
is the farthest thing from the way I was actually feeling at the time. I was incredibly nervous, and feeling very vulnerable.
As I waited for him to speak, I watched him absentmindedly finger his Mason ring for a few moments before beginning
his monologue. “Not ever...will I be responsible for putting a female instructor in that school. It’s not because you’re not
good enough, it’s because it is not the place for a woman in the military.” He was referencing a recent nomination (based
on performance) for me to become an instructor in a school that was considered very prestigious in the military community which I was part of at the time. He paused, and then asked if I had any questions. I said I did not. Later that same
day, I spoke with the First Sergeant of my Company, and as she patiently listened to me tell her very honestly what had
happened, I started to get the feeling that she wasn’t going to give me the sympathy I expected from a female in a high
ranking leadership position in the military. I expected her to be enraged, to take action immediately to right this clear
expression of bias against me based on my sex. She did none of those things. In a very controlled voice she said, “Where
one door closes, a window opens.” It was all of my willpower not to cry at that moment.