Choices4

After God made the heavens and earth, and saw that is was all good, He said, “Let us make man in our own image, after our likeness…” Genesis 1:26, (KJV). He went on to say, in His infinite love and wisdom, “It is not good for man to be alone; I will make him a help meet… And the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and he slept; and He took one of his ribs… And the rib, which the Lord had taken from man, made He a woman… and brought her unto man… Genesis 2:18, 22. (KJV). And Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh: and she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Genesis 2:23-24 (KJV). 1 Corinthians 11:3 (KJV) further defines the role of man and clearly states, “But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.” So it is written. This was the plan from the beginning and always the winning argument for man. This writer truly believes in that plan and concedes to the divine order. But, let’s further analyze that argument. The rib God used to make woman is an important part of man’s anatomy and should be treated as such. Sure, he can exist and still function without it, but, viewing the complete picture frame of things, he wouldn’t be whole. A great singer said it best when he proclaimed, “This is a man’s world, but it would be nothing without a woman or a girl.” And so it was from the beginning of time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Fast forward to the new millennium; an ever changing world where just about anything and everything goes; a world that is technologically overloaded, and morally deficient. Somewhere, in the divine scheme of things, the roles of the man and woman became blurred. The man’s world got turned upside down and the rib, which was taken from him, was forced to the forefront. Today’s woman finds herself walking in a brand new set of shoes. Not that she asked for those shoes, but rather, she was forced to wear them. Her new role came with some significant changes in the game plan. Because of those changes, gone are the days of the loyal, submissive women like Naomi, Ruth and the Mother Mary, from back in the bible days, who humbled themselves to the Lord’s will, submitting totally to her man. And, in keeping with the modern standards of today’s times, gone are the days of Big Mama, Nanna and Madea; strong women who stepped into her new shoes to keep the family together when times got hard. They accepted the responsibility without hesitating and did what had to be done. No questions asked. Also gone are the days of Florida Evans and Louise Jefferson, who supported and stood with their men through all of his lows and moments of weaknesses; taking charge when need be, yet, still letting her man be a man. Times are forever evolving. Today’s woman is cut from a different fabric, derived from the many difficult adjustments she’s had to endure trying to cope with the challenges facing her man in today’s society. She’s also coping with the changes in attitudes in how men treat the woman as a result of those challenges. How well she’s handling these adjustments is a constant subject of discussion. So, let’s take inventory and bring out the report card. A beautiful brother once said that a woman should ‘Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man.’ A very interesting topic of contemplation from the male perspective. The revelations are very enlightening and taken much to heart. But, playing the devil’s advocate, let’s flip that coin to the other side. There’s always two sides to a coin. This writer advises that evolved rib to, ‘Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Woman.’ Contrary to popular belief, a man has no winnable case against a woman who has her shit together and working with a plan. Just look what happened to Adam in the garden. He got duped by Eve into going against God’s orders. Perhaps it would have profited him more if he had taken some time and thought like a woman. Among these pages, the lives and relationships of three totally different women are opened up for discussion and placed on the stand for cross examination. What will the verdicts be? You decide.