By Alicia Bartolotta
International Women’s month is a time to celebrate the women around you. So, during this month I took the time to look around me and realized so many women shaped me into the person I am today. Women I am more grateful for than anyone else because they taught me lessons I live by every day.
The first woman who inspires me is my mother. A mother of four who has done nothing but love and support her children, but her motherhood, though amazing, is not the only thing that inspires me. That honor goes to the amazing work she did during the Covid- 19 pandemic. My mother is a nurse practitioner which means she was on the floor almost every day saving lives during these unsettling times. She made extreme sacrifices for those in her workplace but also chose to eat dinner at a different table, change in and out of her scrubs in the garage and miss out on opportunities to prevent spreading any germs she caught at work to myself and the rest of my family. My mother created a separation between herself and the people she loves to protect them and still somehow was supportive and there for me during these times.
The next group of women that inspires me are my sorority sisters in Sigma Delta Tau here at Manhattan College. Joining the sorority last semester has allowed me to meet a group of over 100 women who are all inspirational and amazing in different ways. The ladies on our executive and general board all shine each chapter, presenting and putting into motion their ideas. Watching them better not only the sorority but the community around us is something I am so happy to see each week. All the friends I have made make my life better each day by just being the most friendly and hard-working people I know. I have friends of many different majors in the sorority and seeing the way they push themselves in their fields makes me work harder in my own field. Hearing about their internships and plans for the future teaches me I can do anything if I work hard and stay focused.
I could go on for hours about every woman I have ever met and how they had inspired me and shaped me into the person I am today. I am grateful for the lessons I have learned from those mentioned and I can’t wait to see what I learn next from them. Whether it be from my mother, sisters or a stranger, the lessons women are able to teach and share with me are always valued. Happy international women’s month everyone!