MRS Degree

This question came from Dear Abby. I am itching for a question from internet land.

DEAR ABBY: I'm writing because I'm not sure who else to ask. I'm 22, in college, and I'm tired of having to defend what I want to do with my life. My major is liberal arts. I chose it only because I have no passion for any specific area.

When family or friends ask what my major is and I tell them, they generally come back with something about majoring in "unemployment" or making sure I have a "backup plan" in case I don't find a rich husband.

Abby, all I want is to be a mother to my future children and a wife to my husband. I'm tired of defending myself, and I'm beginning to think my desires are not normal. What can I say to people when they question me, and is what I want normal? -- UNSURE IN THE MIDWEST

Dear Unsure:

One thing a lot of people, especially the crowd over 45 or so don’t get is that a bachelor’s degree doesn’t mean a whole lot anymore. As far as getting a job after college you need something more than just a BA to make yourself marketable. The exceptions are if your major specifically trains you for a particular field such as nursing, or engineering. Those fields seem to be moving towards a master’s degree, but they aren’t quiet there yet. Enlighten family and friends of this fact when they give you a hard time.

You would be just as marketable with a liberal arts BA as with a psychology, criminology, or communications BA. That isn’t the degree you’re looking for though. You are looking for a MRS degree. You aren’t the first and you won’t be the last. At the end of the day you are pursuing your own happiness and who am I (or anyone else) to stand in your way.

The majority of straight women especially those approaching thirty want nothing more than babies and husbands. Your desires are quite normal. It’s kind of annoying if you’re outside that norm like myself (gay, and like children ok… if you cook them right). But hey, we aren’t all alike and the world is a better place for it.

I would like to encourage you to keep some hobbies and maybe part-time work (even if it’s volunteer) outside the home even when you are a mother. Cultivating interests outside the home will make you a more well rounded individual and thus a better mother and wife. If you live solely through your husband and children you might flip out and become a longenbarger basket/Avon/Amway lady after your kids become more independent. We don’t need any more of those people in the world.