Awsome Article in MommyTrackd.com

Beyonce: Lyrics for the Modern Mom.

Actress and singer Beyonce Knowles’ latest hit "If I Were a Boy" is, naturally, a love song. The premise is that men would be more understanding lovers if each did a stint as a woman. The lyrics are haunting and wistful, filled with longing -- to be a boy, and to be better understood as a woman.

If I were a boyEven just for a day I’d put myself first And make the rules as I go


Hearing the song over and over on the radio as I chauffeur my kids to school and sports and the supermarket made me think not about love – but about how juggling career and family would be easier if men and women had a chance to trade places, even just for a day. How would balancing work and family be different if we working mamas were all men?

This is how my lyrics would go (not quite as lyrical as Sasha Fierce, I admit):


If I were a man Bosses would give sick days
When our kids were sick
School holidays would comeWith good childcare plans
Our taxes would pay
For neighborhood childcare centers(We’ve got fire and police stations – why not?)
Judges and politicians making family leave laws
Would have to spend one week aloneTaking care of three or more kids
All by themselves
Parents could bring babies to work
For six months at least
Lactation rooms would have views
As nice as corporate conference rooms
Paternity leave
Would be mandatoryDitto for child support
Working parents would get annual awards
For best juggling acts
Instead of a baby shower when we leave work
We’d get a party when we came back
Economists would spend more time
On the gender pay gap
They’d find a formula -- like the consumer price index
To calculate a stay-at-home mom’s pay grade
My husband would consider laundry, groceries and diapers
Part of his job, not a favor for me
And on Mother’s Day
Instead of crumbs in my bed
I’d get a massage and pedicure
And dinner to eat while it’s still warm


However, despite the unique challenges I’ve faced as a working mom, I’ve never wanted to be a man. I’m with Golda Meir, former prime minister of Israel and mother of two, who famously said:

"It's the men who are discriminated against. They can't bear children. "