It’s no secret that the construction industry is not exactly woman friendly. How many times have you heard the phrase “now listen little lady…” when talking about contractors or supply yard employees?  That may be a bit rich for reality, but my point is that it isn’t uncommon for women to be told, or simply be given a subconscious message that they aren’t welcome in the construction world. I think that’s a huge loss and something that needs to change.

I believe that women hold such a unique perspective on life and on construction in general that to lose their input is a loss well beyond the moment, but for the greater success of the structure. I’m a believer in energies: masculine and feminine, and how they play out in the world as a balance. If that balance is lost, things don’t work as well, period. Why would it be any different in construction?

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If the balance of feminine to masculine is too heavily leaning towards masculine, then the input and touch of the feminine will be lost on the structure. Let’s be clear here, our homes are very often a manifestation of the feminine. Okay, the “man-cave” may not be, but the rest of the home is, energetically speaking. I don’t mean that the walls are painted pink and that flowing curtains drape across every window. That’s too simplistic. I mean that the energy of the feminine is abundant in a home. The sense of home: comfort, safety, warmth, love, these are all aspects of the feminine incarnate in the home.

I teach straw bale construction workshops all over the world and am always impressed with the number of women who attend my classes. Some of them have construction experience while many more do not. In fact, many of them have never held a nail gun before and are often intimidated by the more “heavy duty” tools. By the end of the week, almost without exception, the women are all using the chainsaws, nail guns, and other tools with confidence. I love that!

I hope that more women continue to sign up for my workshops and continue to thrive in the field of construction. Perhaps it’s the natural, organic nature of straw bale construction that draws so many women in. I don’t know. What I do know is that a large percentage of my readers, that’s you, are women and that many of you have taken workshops with me. I assume that there are those of you out there wondering if you can do it. Wondering if you have what it takes to build your own home. Many of you may have been told by other construction industry members to get out of the way. Well, I say to you: jump in, get your hands dirty, share with the rest of us your gifts, and build your dream!

About the Author

Andrew Morison is a specialist in straw bale and green construction. He has shown thousands of people how to build their own straw bale projects through his comprehensive series of instructional straw bale, concrete foundation, and plastering DVDs. You can check these out at www.LearnStrawBale.com..

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Categories: Helping Each Other/Personal Stories 7 Comments »