The work of the 21st century, in other words, is maternal. Forgive me for stereotyping. I am not one of those people who thinks motherhood is a lowly thing. I think it is a great and wonderful and underrecognized and underrewarded thing. Perhaps the reason we don’t take care of our planet, societies, and selves enough is that we hold motherhood in contempt. Mothering implies nourishing, tending, mending. It means soothing and healing and caressing away the pain. Father doesn’t do that. Father t…