 Sharing Their Gifts |
Though it has its roots as a Socialist holiday and was a perennial favorite of the Soviet Union, with its adoption by the United Nations, International Woman's Day has become more widely celebrated. Many countries observe March 8 as a national holiday. But does the holiday commemorate the struggle of women for equality, justice, peace and development, or is it merely Valentine's Day, Part II? We interviewed five successful Ukrainian women and ask that they reflect on what International Women's Day means to them. We asked each of them the following three questions:
1. International Women's Day was an important and much celebrated holiday in the former Soviet Union. How important is the continued celebration of March 8 to the women of independent Ukraine today?
2. What was the best gift that you received on this holiday in the past? And what is an appropriate gift from a man to a woman on Women's Day? That is, what would you like to receive?
3. What do you consider some of the most important accomplishments, particularly recently, in both your professional and personal lives?
Herewith our five interviewee's, their backgrounds, interests, and their individual responses.
Name: Nataly Aristova.
Business activity: Banking.
Position: PR manager.
Hobbies: Aerobics, traveling, photography, reading.
Goals: Improve my professional skills; in particular, improve my knowledge in business planning. Also, to make a trip to India
Q-1: I can't say that I am anxiously looking forward to this day. I have a much warmer attitude toward the New Year's holiday, though of course it's pleasant for me to get gifts and flowers on March 8 - or any other day! Few of the people celebrating this day remember or think about the history of the holiday. More likely, it is perceived out of the context of topicality - that it is just a day when you are greeted because you are a woman. Women remain women regardless of the historical issues. Modern Ukrainian women celebrate March 8 as a day of attention to them.
Q-2: Frankly, I can't recall a March 8th gift that has really stuck in my memory. Which means that my best present is still to come! This year, I am bored with winter and would like my sweetheart to give me a gift related to something warm, with spring.
Q-3: One of my major business achievements has been to find a sphere of activity that allowed me to combine my organizational, communications and creative abilities. My job as a public relations manager calls for some long, ten and 11-hour days. At first, I thought that would be a problem. But my boyfriend is also very busy, so I have been able to balance my personal life and work. We are planning a pleasant weekend trip to Hungary in springtime. Trips like that are becoming a small tradition for us. o
Name: Anna Derevyanko
Business activity: Administration and financial management.
Position: Deputy Director, European Business Association.
Hobby: Traveling.
Goals: Achieving success in my field, and earning the respect and trust of the people with whom I communicate.
Q-1: A woman should feel like there is holiday every day, not only on March 8. Then, women would be truly happy.
Q-2: I love my family very much, so the biggest gift for me is to receive the love, respect and support of the people who are closest and dearest to me. It is also important to me that all these people are healthy and happy.
Q-3: I think that my biggest achievements in business are yet to come. Every time there is a problem solved for a company-member of the European Business Association, I consider it a small victory that will play a part in the organization's overall success. In my personal life, my son, who became a first-grade pupil not long ago, makes me happy with his successes. o
Name: Lyudmila Bereznitskaya
Business activity: Art gallery management, art critic.
Position: Director, L-Art Gallery.
Hobby: Collector.
Goals: While changing the overall direction of my life, to not change my attitude toward life.
Q-1: A holiday is a holiday, and the reason for it isn't important to me. Many have forgotten Rosa Luxembourg
(a Polish socialist who helped organize the German Communist party - UO) or Clara Zetkin (a prominent figure in the international workers' movement in the 1880s-1920s - UO). For many Ukrainians, this holiday has become a symbol of femininity, instead.
Q-2: I have received many gifts, and each was special and different. It's important that a gift is not only desired, but has something that is important for every woman.
I think that every woman is able to see that "something" and appreciate it.
Q-3: It's very difficult to mention something specific. There have been many happy moments in my life. I am a happy person, because all of my initiatives are doomed for success. Of all accomplishments, the most important is my gallery and the things happening in it. Not only exhibitions or controversial art projects and auctions, but also the activity of L-Art Gallery's Club of Friends. Members of the club are people of different professions for whom art and the gallery have become part of their lives. The club's president, Leonid Kisterskiy, holds a doctorate in economics and is director of the Institute of International Cooperation. He is also our auctioneer. Together, we conduct meetings, hold parties and charity auctions, as well as celebrate birthdays and holidays, including March 8th. In general, we have fun! o
Name: Tatiana Kovtun
Business activity: Airline industry.
Position: Director of advertising, Aerosvit
Hobbies: Travel, tennis.
Goals: I have many, in both my professional and personal life. There is always something to strive for!
Q-1: Now that there is no longer a Soviet state, the March 8 holiday has lost its political overtones and it could be better defined today as a holiday celebrating spring and femininity. Women today don't need additional self-affirmation in a male-dominated society, but men's' attention is always needed!
Q-2: Flowers. Lots of flowers. Lots and lots of flowers!
Q-3: Taking into account the specifics of my work, I can bravely say that everyone can see the successes and failures of my work, since that is the nature of advertising!
Name: Nataly Lotra
Business activity: Advertising
Position: Executive Vice-President, The Willard Group
Hobbies: When my son was born, all my hobbies and spare time activities became insignificant. Nevertheless, my love in creating bouquets from fresh flowers remains abiding.
Goals: I would like to have a house with enough space to have big celebrations for holidays and birthday parties.
Q-1: I never considered March 8 a holiday with a political or social context. Today, as during Soviet times, I consider it a holiday of spring. It is a holiday when most men sincerely try to do something pleasant for their sweethearts. This is also a day when each of us says some kind words to his or her mother. It is a day when kindergartens have extremely touching morning celebrations during which yet lisping and clumsy kids recite their first verses about their moms. The mothers, sitting in the hall, feel lumps in their throats, and happy tears roll down their cheeks. This is a day when every woman expects something special. How can one refrain from having such a day?
Q-2: Presents on March 8 are rather symbolic. In my view, the best gift is the one that shows a man's fineness of observation and a lack of indifference to his companion. Here are several ways men can choose gifts: If a woman is paging through a magazine, sees a perfume sample and remarks favorably on it, there is your ideal gift! It's also useful to steal a glance at her cosmetics bag. Look for well-used and dried mascara, or a powder box which, while new, has been broken. Pay attention to your beloved's grumbling when she and you are getting ready to visit someone. A comment that, "a bright blue neckerchief would go well here" could very easily tell you what gift would be appreciated. For me, the ideal gift is the one I start using on March 9!
Q-3: My major achievements are my family and children. Soon, my youngest son will turn four and his birth was the happiest event in recent years. My oldest daughter is 14, she's seriously taking dance classes, and I am very proud to have seen her perform on the stage of Ukraine Palace.
In business, it's harder to point to personal achievements, since the advertising business is about teamwork. In this sense, the team of people with whom I work is a serious achievement - they are professional, self-sufficient and talented people.
I am very proud that in the morning I go to work in a joyful mood and return home in the evening in the same mood.
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