Hyacinth/Υάκινθος

“The beautiful spring came; and when Nature resumes her loveliness, the human soul is apt to revive also.”-Harriet Ann Jacobs

«Ήρθε η όμορφη άνοιξη· και όταν η Φύση ξαναβρεί την ομορφιά της, η ανθρώπινη ψυχή είναι επίσης ικανή να αναζωογονηθεί.» -Harriet Ann Jacobs

Great Expectations/Μεγάλες Προσδοκίες
‘Great Expectations’ illustration by Angela Zafiris

Happy International Women’s day!

The drawing is a comparison of two generations of women. So much has changed in a hundred years.

When I compare my generation with my mother’s and my grandmother’s I can’t believe how different each generation is.

For example, the women from my grandmother’s generation were only required to get married and have lots of children, do some farm work, and that’s about it.

With my mothers’ generation, women were expected to get married, have a few children, get a job, be great cooks, cleaners and hosts.

Then with my generation of women, we are still expected to get married, have children (maybe one or two), get a higher education, be great chefs, mothers (helicopter mother), wives (no nagging), cleaners, and hosts. But, then there is more added to the plate. She must have impeccable hygiene, dress stylish, be classy, get plastic surgery, be extremely knowledgable- a walking encyclopedia, learn many languages, have many skills and hobbies, have many friends, experiences, travel the world, do men’s work etc.

We have more options, opportunities and equality than ever before, but too much has been put on our plates. A modern woman has to be an extraordinary human being. The bar has been set very high. No excuses anymore. Not with all the options that women before us didn’t have. And although some women can achieve many things in their life, not all women can or even want to…

This type of life is exhausting, and only for people who are made of steel, with never-ending energy deposits, and who possess iron-clad stomachs.

There have been many surveys published in the recent years that have revealed that women are more stressed than men https://www.apa.org/topics/stress/women-stress

According to the survey more and more women feel burned out due to having to balance their home life with a career. Also, they don’t feel that men contribute enough. The truth is that young women today have been exploited and burnt out by modern society. The majority of modern women are over-worked, stressed, angry, anxiety-ridden, and financially insecure. This is a topic that is not discussed enough in any country, as it should be.

The Birth of the Housewife
‘The Birth of the Housewife’ handmade collage by Angela Zafiris

My surreal handmade collage with paper from books. I used a print of the very famous renaissance painting, ‘The Birth of Venus’ by Italian artist Sandro Boticelli completed 1480’s, for my collage.

I hope his spirit doesn’t haunt me..haha! But, a funny thing happened after completed this. I randomly clicked on a travel vlogger that went to Florence and he went to the museum where the painting is being displayed. So that was a little strange. Coincidence??

I don’t know much about his background, but I am intrigued and will be doing some research on him. A man who paints or sculpts a goddess like Venus/Aphrodite is most definitely a man with strong feminine energy. It’s fascinating to say the least.

Το σουρεαλιστικό χειροποίητο κολάζ μου με χαρτί από βιβλία, ‘Η Γέννηση της Νοικοκυράς’ Χρησιμοποίησα μια εκτύπωση του πολύ διάσημου αναγεννησιακού πίνακα, «Η Γέννηση της Αφροδίτης» του Ιταλού καλλιτέχνη Sandro Boticelli που ολοκληρώθηκε τη δεκαετία του 1480, για το κολάζ μου.

Ελπίζω να μην με κυνηγάει το πνεύμα του..χαχα! Αλλά, ένα αστείο πράγμα συνέβη μετά την ολοκλήρωση αυτού. Έκανα τυχαία κλικ σε ένα ταξιδιωτικό vlogger που πήγε στη Φλωρεντία και πήγε στο μουσείο όπου εκτίθεται ο πίνακας. Αυτό λοιπόν ήταν λίγο περίεργο. Σύμπτωση??

Δεν ξέρω πολλά για το ιστορικό του, αλλά με ενδιαφέρει και θα κάνω κάποια έρευνα για αυτόν. Ένας άντρας που ζωγραφίζει ή σμιλεύει την θεά Αφροδίτη είναι σίγουρα ένας άντρας με έντονη θηλυκή ενέργεια. Είναι το λιγότερο συναρπαστικό.

They’re Living in your Mind Rent Free
‘They’re living in your mind rent free’. Handmade surreal collage by Angela Zafiris

Oh the horror! I have met my fair share of highly toxic people in my life. We are told to remove them from our lives, but trying to remove them from your mind is a whole other feat.

I like the idiom ‘they’re living in your mind rent free’, because it is the truth. These people, who are not in your life anymore, still have power over your thoughts. This can be frustrating, because they have won. That’s why it is important that we remove the toxic people from not only our lives, but from our thoughts so that we can have more peaceful lives.

Ωχ τη φρίκη! Έχω γνωρίσει πολλούς εξαιρετικά τοξικούς ανθρώπους στη ζωή μου. Μας λένε να τα αφαιρέσουμε από τη ζωή μας, αλλά το να προσπαθείς να τα αφαιρέσεις από το μυαλό σου είναι εντελώς άλλο κατόρθωμα.

Μου αρέσει το ιδίωμα «ζουν στο μυαλό σου χωρίς ενοίκιο», γιατί είναι η αλήθεια. Αυτοί οι άνθρωποι, που δεν είναι πια στη ζωή μας, εξακολουθούν να έχουν εξουσία πάνω στις σκέψεις μας. Αυτό μπορεί να είναι απογοητευτικό, γιατί έχουν κερδίσει. Γι’ αυτό είναι σημαντικό να απομακρύνουμε τους τοξικούς ανθρώπους όχι μόνο από τη ζωή μας, αλλά από τις σκέψεις μας, ώστε να έχουμε μια πιο ήρεμη ζωή