Meet the NEW type of soccer mom in the United States.
The stereotypical soccer mom of the late 80's and early 90's has morphed. Half of today's soccer moms are divorced and supporting single parent households. They are walking the fine line of doing everything a stay at home mom does yet work outside the home. With the influence of a TV show, the soccer mom definition has been renamed. She is now a Desperate Housewife.
When the first Desperate Housewives show aired, I was skeptical but watched. After the first hour I knew the show would reach out to multitudes of women and be a hit. I was hooked myself after one episode. Why?
I also live on a cul-de-sac in a quiet suburb. I have my very own Wisteria Lane - with a twist. (The show takes place on Wisteria Lane for those of you who don't watch yet.) Of the 12 homes on our street, mothers who are divorced, separated or single, all with young children, occupy eight of them. Eight mothers and fifteen kids. Can you be divorced or single and still be a desperate housewife?
Yes. If you look at the show's characters - Bree, Lynette, Gabrielle and Susan - two are married and two are not. So, according to them, a mom is a mom is a mom, and we all face the same "mom" issues, whether we are divorced, widowed, separated or single.
I am Caucasian, college educated and a former corporate wife. There are many other women in the same boat as I am, but we are a quiet group. We're too busy working, cooking, cleaning and chauffeuring the kids around to soccer practice to make much noise. Desperate Housewives finally gives a voice to this group, my group of women, who have largely been ignored until now.
Issues that real desperate moms and wives face- whether they are current or former wives - are numerous. I knew that being a single "soccer" mom would be tough. What I did not expect were nights of laying my head down on the desk and sobbing. The anxiety is overwhelming somedays - especially when it seems nothing is going right. The kids are sick, the writing project is overdue, the cats keep puking on the floor, the ex has a bee in his bonnet and all of the credit card bills come on the same day - Friday.
Now, by the time the Sunday night show rolls around, everything else stops. Watching other women, ones who I can finally REALLY relate to, even though they are on TV, makes me feel not so isolated in my world. Although glamorized, and with perfect bodied actresses, the issues touch nerves week after week, single or not. I have dealt with several of these issues, as well as having friends with diet pill troubles, infidelity and alcoholism and such. If only our dramas could be cleverly written with a neat resolution every week.
Desperate Housewives across the country are getting their voice - through a TV show. Desperate Housewives will continue to rule the country this year too. Their issues may seem fictional, but they do exist, in large numbers, in a quiet neighborhood closer than you might think.
