DO IT FOR MOM (Do it for Denmark)

Oct 2, 2015 | Denmark

It’s highly unlikely that you’ve missed this one, but if you’re reading this from outside Denmark then you might want to read on.

This is the new tagline for a funny commercial that came out recently in Danish media. It’s a video that starts off with an older lady looking sad because she really wants grandchildren, and they overlap it with facts about the Danish economy and how there aren’t enough people working in the country to keep it going, so how can you help? This poor woman is shown raising her child, doing mother type things, and then shows that she is so desperate for grandkids that she wants to help take off a woman’s bra for her son! (Eek!) I was close to stopping watching it there but then it got a bit better…

They also started to speak about how couples have more sex on not just vacations, but tropical vacations, and how they can guarantee that after 9 months there will be a baby born and that the money is like an investment. The mother is so happy and gives her son money to go on vacation, and then they go into facts like how exercise makes people horny, therefore makes them want to ‘’have some fun’’ while they are away, etc etc, use your imagination.

Now, this can all be pulled off because A) Denmark is sarcastic nation with a black sense of humor, b) Partly because Danes are good at laughing at themselves and know there is some truth to this since Denmark is a cold, dark country and people really DO have the need to get away to sunnier places. But this post isn’t about dogging the Danes for this funny satire. It’s just helps bring up a point that we, as women and men in the age from 25-40 are feeling pressure from society, family and facebook to have kids and procreate when simply, it isn’t for everyone.

Just this week there was a woman who was warmly APPLAUDED for putting up a Facebook post regarding children and that people shouldn’t always be ‘’bothering and prodding’’ others about when they are going to start a family or when they want to have kids because it is such a personal topic. Everyone feels that it is an open topic that can be discussed freely. I know myself I get a bit turned off when people I barely know ask me when I want to have children, or tell me that I’d better hurry up, and all I’m thinking is, ‘’Um, hi, have we met? My name is Michelle and I’m from Michigan…’’ I personally wouldn’t dream of bringing up such a personal topic for people I’ve just met. It’s just that not everyone may want kids, or maybe people are desperately trying to have kids and it hurts to talk about it. The point is, is that in a world where we are being more accepting of alternative lifestyles, religions, gender, sexual orientations and upbringings, it seems that we are still a bit old fashioned when it comes in women and their right to NOT have children, or the expectancy that everyone is going to get into a relationship and then immediately start popping out offspring. It’s still an expected thing, and even if we can sit back and laugh at this ad like myself, the underlying truth is that the pressure is still there and we should all really be easier on ourselves to live our own lives the way we see fit, with or without kids, and Mom will just have to deal.

Here is the funny Danish commercial you can see here: https://www.facebook.com/spiesrejser/videos/10152974441532127/?fref=nf

If you want to see the article about the woman’s Facebook post, check it out here: http://www.buzzfeed.com/javiermoreno/this-woman-perfectly-explains-why-you-shouldnt-as#.lgjpow5Mn

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