I think it's downright perverse to describe the relationship between men and women as "oppressive."

This narrative continues to pervade our society as men are being forced to emasculate themselves to conform to a more feminine ideal that usually ends up very bad for them.

Masculinity is not lacking in empathy. Masculinity is not lacking anything that it needs to be feminised to get and that brings me to the story of one of my personal heroes.

Arunachalam Muruganantham.

Yeah, funny name but absolute genius!

His story describes in a better way the relationship between both sexes that has allowed our species to dominate the earth in the few thousand years since we showed up.

It's collaboration that has allowed our species (Home Sapiens) survive for so long.

Collaboration between both sexes. The part that men and women have played and continue to play has allowed us to becomes the dominant species

It has moved us us up from the middle of the food chain when our ancestors had to feed on bone marrow for protein to now when we can eat

whatever we want.

But enough of the evolution talk.

Let's talk about Arunachalam Muruganantham and why he's one of my personal heroes because his story helped me understand that without eachother, we won't be doing as well as we are as a species.

Men and women have struggled terribly throughout history. Mother nature is not a gentle soul. She cares not for your political correctness and she afflicts us all equally, sometimes terribly and painfully.

Men and women have had to deal with the afflictions of nature and women

have the added burden of child birth and less physical prowess in a physically gruesome world.

Women had to put up with the struggles of menstruation, unwanted pregnancies , high mortality rate during childbirth in addition to the unforgiving nature of nature.

Everything that has been invented to reduce these sufferings can be attached to a few men who took it upon themselves at personal cost sometimes to allay the suffering of the female folk. After all, it's in a man's nature to provide and protect.

Enters our protagonist....

Arunachalam Muruganantham "The Tampon King of India."

His wife having to use dirty rags for her menstruation was something he found very troubling. And at some point, he became obsessed with finding a solution.

She shouldn't have to suffer like that and he was determined

to ensure she doesn't.

The family's choice was between expensive sanitary pads or food for the family.

The next 14 years of his life after that event was dedicated to finding a solution. So much so his neighbours thought he had ran mad.

His wife and even mother deserted him.

They were terrified of his obsession.

But like every good man out there who understands that being a man is an act of service even when you're not appreciated or loved, he kept at it.

When he ran out of female volunteers to wear his product. He took to wearing a bladder

of pig's blood as replacement.

Now his invention his being manufactured by women run self-help groups on a large scale. He never got a patent for his invention.

He wasn't in it for the money, he just wanted to make sure his wife didn't have to use dirty rags for her

menstruation and his family didn't have to choose between food and expensive sanitary pads for her.

He put it all at risk to find a solution.

The mad man who wore pig bladder filled with blood became the Tampon King.

He never menstruated himself but the suffering of his

wife was enough motivation.

Look up almost every other invention that has done a great deal of good at allaying this extra burdens for women and you'll find men.

- James John Simpson
- Earle Cleveland
- Gregory Goodwill Pincus

Are they all part of the oppressive patriarchy?

No.

These men understood that women hold up the other end of the sky and for us to have a chance at a good life. The extra burden and suffering of women afflicted on them by nature had to be allayed.

For women to be able to raise children and free up men to go

and invent these things, they needed a certain level of comfort.

Raising a home is one of the hardest jobs in the world.

The understanding of this drove this men to ensure women could do it in relative comfort.

Women still dictate the market today. What they like sells.

Can we then describe this relationship has "oppressive?"

Try "collaborative."

We are grateful for patriarchs like Arunachalam Muruganantham for inventing these things that helped become better at human racing.

We are in a race against time and it's only a matter of time

before we go extinct. But while we're here.

#CelebrateMasculinity

I celebrate all the upstanding men out there who play their part to ensure we have a livable world.

Happy #InternationalTwitterMensDay