Age should just be a number right? Once you hit the big 3-0 though, the number comes with its own baggage, particularly people who think they know better by forcing a checklist of stereotypes into your face. “Oh you’re 30? You should be married by now” or “You should already have two kids at this age!” Sound familiar? It seems Miss S actress Ma Yili begs to differ with some of these sentiments, particularly the latter when she said that a woman’s value in society should not just be about becoming a mother but becoming the best version of herself.
Appearing on the aptly entitled talk show Women over 30, Ma Yili opened up about how she used to think getting pregnant was a very important thing, and that the egg has a “very important mission”. Then after watching “Broken Egg”, the 44 year old mother of two said “she realised the purpose of an egg is not for it to become fertilized and that it can be left just as it is…an egg. It’s only after so many years that we begin to understand that the defining factor of a woman’s value does not solely come from being a mother. It’s about becoming the best version of ourselves. Let the egg be and don’t ask it to be something more.” In other words, the choice to have children is yours and whatever you choose must be respected.
At this day and age, antiquated norms about women’s role in society should already be a thing of the past. And while we’ve made some headway in breaking traditional gender stereotypes when it comes to women having kids, there clearly is still work to be done when it comes to stereotypes that need to be overcome.
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