It’s Mother’s Day. The suitcase from my weekly Ottawa–Winnipeg flight sits ready to be emptied and repacked. A bigger suitcase for my husband and our son Nick, who has a disability and is off to Montreal Neuro for more tests and brain surgery, is sitting out on the bed waiting to be packed. My younger son, Joe, is running around looking for the Dippity-Do for his cool new hairdo, all the while fretting about absent parents and asking questions about death. The phone keeps ringing with calls from constituents. There are events to attend and arrangements for the sitter to confirm. Summer camp registration is late and the lawn has to be mowed. I’m almost out of control and starting to walk wildly around the house because there’s just too much to do, and I don’t know where to start.

Then, I get a Mother’s Day card from my husband and two boys. On the front it asks, “Why did the mom cross the road?” When I open it up it reads, “No one could tell, really. She was mumbling to herself about peace and quiet. She circled the block a couple of times and came back a lot happier.” The card helps, actually lifts up my spirits. I’m reminded that lots of other women are involved in this daily juggling ritual, and, above all, that I’m surrounded by people who support what I’m doing and accept the way I am.

My time in politics has been exactly concurrent with my time as a parent: my first-born arrived just a short time before my first election as an MLA, and my second son was conceived in the middle of the next campaign. I can’t separate out these two parts of my life. They have become interwoven. Has the personal become political or the political now personal? I’m not sure. What I do know is that the very things that create the stress and complexity in my life are also what drive me and give me a sense of accomplishment.

When I dip into my memory box, what I come up with are stories from the intersection, that place where politics and family life, politics and my role as a woman overlap and connect. I recall one incident with my oldest son, Nick, who was about two at the time and had been observing my feverish pace to sign up members for my first nomination race. He was with me in the kitchen while I was looking for something among the pots and pans and asked, “Are you looking for a membership?” Another time I was busy fighting child care cutbacks at the Manitoba legislature and Joe, who was around three years old, announced that the government had come to his daycare and stolen all the money! I also remember messages of support when I breastfed newborn Joe at the legislative building, which made me realize that this act probably had more of an impact than all the speeches on women’s equality I had ever made.

There are other rewards at this intersection. One is the knowledge gained from having a son who is mentally challenged into the political arena and speaking out against society ditching its responsibility towards the fragile, the aged and the at-risk. Another is the inner peace achieved by overcoming feeling powerless and knowing that, in the process, others are inspired to turn fear and anger into political action and positive change. And then there is the knowledge that somehow, despite our worst fears, we pass on something of our values and sense of responsibility to our children. I draw on the memory of Joe at the age of nine who was able to counter schoolyard talk — that all feminists are lesbians who kill their children and divorce their husbands — by asserting that feminists are people who stick up for women’s rights. Another memory is of Nick in one of his tearful goodbyes as I leave for Ottawa. He shows me that deep down he understands why I do what I do when he says, “Why couldn’t you have become an actor or a singer and donated all your money to the poor?”

What more can I ask for? To instill knowledge and impart by example, that is surely our best defence against unreasoning prejudice and forces that seek to destroy. That is what keeps me going. That is what creates clarity in a world of unprecedented change. That is why I am grateful for the women who came before and showed the way; the women who had political courage, who listened to their inner voices and transformed personal experiences into public action; the women who acted upon their beliefs.

And maybe what I’m doing involves some courage, but mostly it involves good support, some luck and a little magic. So what’s my cause for celebration today? It is the relief of surviving another day and not dropping too many balls in my daily juggling act. Just this morning I though I would check out my horoscope and couldn’t believe what I read. It said, “balance work, family and romance; one is getting short shrift.” All I could think was, give me a break!

As I hope you can tell from my story, what I celebrate most of all is making a little difference at that place where politics and children intersect. Which brings me to my last memory: it is of Joe when he lost a tooth and, before bed, put it under his pillow. The next morning the sitter arrived at 6:30 a.m. so I could get to the CBC Studios by 7:00 a.m. for an interview on genetically altered foods. Just before we went on-air, I remembered that I had forgotten to replace the tooth with money and immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Somehow I survived the interview, got home by 7:30 before my son woke up and made the switch. What a reason to celebrate. I made a little difference on the political front, the old parenting instincts kicked in and, most importantly, there is still a tooth fairy.

Photo © Towne Studios Ltd.

Judy Wasylycia-Leis was re-elected on January 23, 2006 as the Member of Parliament for Winnipeg North.  This is her fourth consecutive term as an NDP MP representing her community.

Her political career began in 1976 as a Parliamentary Intern, followed by work as Women’s Organizer for the federal NDP, Executive Assistant to NDP Leader Ed Broadbent, and Coordinator of the Premier’s Secretariat for Manitoba Premier Howard Pawley.

Judy was first elected in 1986 to serve in the Manitoba Legislature as MLA for St. John’s and subsequently served as Minister of Culture with additional responsibility for Status of Women and Multiculturalism. 

She also has a history of involvement in community-based politics. She is former Co-Chair of Cho!ces, Manitoba’s social justice coalition, and has been active with various community organizations including Christmas L.I.T.E. (Local Investment Towards Employment), the Coalition for Children To Live in the Community, the Manitoba Coalition to Save Home Care, and the Medicare Alert Coalition.

Judy is currently the NDP Finance Critic and was recently re-elected by her colleagues to serve as federal NDP Caucus Chair.

Judy and her husband, Ron, have two sons — Joe (17) and Nick (21) — and live in Winnipeg’s North End.