Today, the 8th of March, is International Women’s Day. To celebrate, I’d like to share with you a selection of small tributes to some of the women in my life whom I most admire. I will use first names only, but I hope those of you mentioned below will recognise yourselves and know how special and important you are, to me and to everyone whose lives you touch.

Misja

One of the best and closest friends I have in Norway, you are not only smart and beautiful, but you are also so kind and one of the best listeners I’ve ever known. I don’t know how you’ve managed to fit so many achievements into your life, given that you’re not even 30 yet! Your academic and professional careers are impressive, to say the least, but you are also a wonderful and dedicated mother. I feel lucky to know you and have you as my friend. I don’t know what I would have done if I hadn’t been able to pour my heart out to you all those times in the past few years.

Michelle

I admire you more than I can say. You’re so strong, and so dedicated and as much as you try to deny it or downplay it, you are one of the best mothers I know. Your babies are so lucky to have you as their mum. Even though in some ways we differ in parenting style, I still hold you as one of the people I most look up to and rely on for advice when it comes to how to raise my little girl. You have overcome a lot to get where you are today, and that, to me, speaks volumes about who you are as a person. You are a tower of strength and even if you don’t feel like one, everyone who knows you knows this is true.

Theresia

My first friend in Norway. I wish you hadn’t had to go back to your “normal” life after your short stay here, and I miss you all the time. We got along like old friends from the minute we met, and no matter how much time passes between visits, I never feel like things have changed between us. Professionally and academically I admire all you’ve achieved, and know that I could never do what you’ve done. I love the way you constantly challenge yourself, and push yourself to experience new things. You are someone who has listened to my problems and never been judgmental or dismissive, but you have offered me common sense advice, posed just the right questions to ask myself, and never fobbed me off with sentimental placation. I hope we stay friends forever.

Natalie

I felt like a kindred spirit with you during our time working together, and I’m so happy we have stayed in touch and stayed friends. We barely knew each other when you inadvertently had to sit up all night with me during a crisis. And yet, you were there for me like we had been friends for years. I have never forgotten that. And then there were all those great wine and cheese moments, both at the office and everywhere else. Who else could I have sneaked out for a couple of cheeky glasses with, and then crept back into the office on our hands and knees to play tricks on the receptionists? Giggling all the while, mind you. You have fantastic style, and somehow manage to be gorgeous and sophisticated while at the same time being a great laugh.

And yet another Natalie

(I’m sure you two can work out which one is which!)

Another Natalie, another amazing friend. How long have we known each other? It must be over 10 years now… We’ve been there for each other during some very dark times, and always managed to pull each other back into the light. I loved having a little piece of home here in Norway for my 30th, and you were it! You brought life and light to what might otherwise have been an understated little affair, and danced to stupid songs with me until our feet were red. When I think of you, I think of a larger-than-life personality; a woman who spreads laughter and happiness wherever she goes. Your stories are unfailingly hilarious and I think if we saw each other more often I would probably need to invest in a box of incontinence pants; you make me laugh that much. But underneath that huge personality is a beautiful soul, whose warmth and compassion have pulled me through some of the worst times in my life. Never stop being you.

Jo

You were really so young when you suddenly had two kids in your life, when probably all you wanted was to spend time with their dad. And yet, you’ve been not only a parent to me, but a true friend. You never judge, you never lecture, you just listen and ask me questions so that I can figure out the answers for myself. From homework problems through to boy (and later man) problems, you always helped me find my own way, even if I had to do some damn stupid things along the way to learn what I needed to know. I hope you know how important you are to me, and how much you have done for me over the years. I know that I wouldn’t be who I am today without your guidance and influence.

Mum

It’s really only now that I am a mother myself that I begin to know what you are to me and have done for me. Every day I hear you echoing in my own voice as I talk to and guide my own little girl. From the wonderful legacy that was your mum, and my Grandma, came a woman who for years I just thought of as “Mum” but whom I now feel I have begun to know as a person. Maybe it’s because I’ve lived so far away for so long now, or maybe it’s something we all go through when we become parents ourselves, but either way I feel very lucky to know you both as a mother and as a woman. It seems to be the curse of motherhood that we never know how dearly we are loved until we feel that love for our own children; but now that I know what you must have felt for me all these years, I thank you for it. Maybe I can’t know how hard it is for you that I, and as a consequence, Bubble too, live so far away from you. But you should know that you are always present in the person you have brought me up to be, and I am proud of and grateful for that gift.

Finally, and most importantly;

Bubble

You are the most wonderful and amazing gift I could ever ask for. I look forward so much to seeing the woman you will become, and hope you will always know how much I love you. You have changed my life forever, and though right now I miss some small things (like being able to sleep past 5am), I feel like a light shone down on my life when you entered it. You make me laugh and smile every day, and it is with great joy and also great sadness that I watch you grow so quickly. You are truly a wonder to me, and even though there will undoubtedly be times you will be mad at me, and will probably slam the door in my face, I will always be there when you open it again. Always.

There are so many great women in my life, and though I can’t mention you all here, you should all know that you are wonderful in your own unique way. Take a moment today, not only to think about the women in your life that you couldn’t do without, but who YOU are and why you mean something special to your friends and loved ones. We don’t take enough time to think about ourselves, who we are and what we mean to others, because it’s in our nature to put others first. But you are special, you are valued and you are needed. Every one of you. Happy Women’s Day.