Lucia Steindl

What experiences have formed you as a woman?

As a woman, it is above all the women in my environment that shape me. I experience women who help out everywhere and who don’t feel too weak for any job. This makes me think again and again that I don’t have to limit myself to typically female activities. My husband involves me in many of his activities and encourages me to learn and do everything I want to do.
I admire women who have a great job and who seem to have raised several children “on the side”. Or those who have managed to successfully re-enter working life after their parental leave.
With her style, my mother taught me what it means to give priority to the family and to be unconditionally there for my own children. I learned from my parents not to devote so much time and priority to material things, but rather to relationships – especially the family.

Where have you experienced God in your life?

In order to build a relationship with God when I was young, our group in the Schoenstatt Girls’ Youth has made a valuable contribution. In regular group meetings we exchanged personal experiences, got to know Schoenstatt and discussed questions about our faith. Acquaintances became best friends with whom I still talk about God today.

What do you see as the challenge for women today?

The compatibility of family and work, which is always present in the media and on the political agenda, is in my opinion the challenge for women today. Until recently, this seemed understandable to me from an outside perspective; since my baby was born, I feel it myself.
I find it very challenging to find my place in the family. I oscillate between my feelings of wanting to be a modern power woman, but I feel comfortable and competent when I am responsible for the kitchen and my child – instead of repairing machines and taking care of the car. A traditional division of roles in the family, does that suit me? Am I allowed to accept this role today or am I lagging behind all the developments that women in the past have fought for? This makes me want to return to my structured job soon and earn money. My job requires a long commute, how many hours of work outside the home pay off financially, but also emotionally, since I am far away from my child?

What do you want to change through your life in this world?

I would like to build a foundation with my family that strengthens many people. Together with my husband, I would like to bear witness to how family can be both a school of life and an oasis of strength.