I can only speak for myself, having said that, motherhood is what made me happiest. I waited until I was 32 yrs old to get married. I had a good job. I travelled all over the world. When I had a preemie, I decided to stay home with him. The first few months were very unrewarding (lots of diapers, barf, sleep deprivation, etc). As the baby grew older and I was able to find more and more rewards, I really began to grow into my role. I can’t imagine anything that is more rewarding than helping my children find their way in the world. The rewards seem endless...
I grew up in a household where my femininity was celebrated along with my intelligence and independence. I had the most wonderful and devoted of fathers, a fiercely independent mother (about whom my father remarked on their 25th Anniversary, “Faye, I can honestly say in 25 years, I've often felt like murder, but I've never been bored.” He encouraged us to be all we could, do whatever we set our minds to and was truly (and I think this is important) PROUD of us.
My father's mother was born blind. He watched her navigate life with no resources (the blind were homebound or institutionalized). He watched her bravely face whatever life handed her and realized that the strengths women have are boundless for a truly devoted husband and child.
It's not that we want to be better or more successful than men, but we don't want to be told we are less than they. We are equal BUT different. I celebrate the masculine (really enjoy it on all levels), but I despise extremes on either end. Women complete men, and men complete women.