Yesterday afternoon, I received a phone call from an unfamiliar number and an unfamiliar area code. A man with a Spanish accent asked for "Meg."
It took me a second to get past the accent and think "yes, indeed, he asked for 'Meg'."
I said "may I ask what this is about?"
He said he was from Gordon's Jewelers and wanted to follow up on Meg's recent purchase, to make sure everything was satisfactory.
I told him I had not heard any complaints, so could assume all was good.
He thanked me and rang off.
I was at the office at the time. Even so, I thought "could I ask him to wait, try my best girl voice and say 'this is Meg?'"
I decided that I not only wouldn't fool anyone, I'd be easily overheard ~ I could easily hear the guy across the hall talking on the phone ~ and people would wonder what the heck was going on with the new guy.
Also, check this out. I like the parents already.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
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I saw the article you linked to yesterday, and while my initial reaction was the same as yours, on reflection I'm not quite as supportive. I think the parents are, in their own way, imposing their own attitudes toward gender on their kids just as much as any macho guy who hands his newborn a football is doing. I think a kid has to know what gender he/she is before he can decide what gender he/she wants to be.
ReplyDeleteI imagine I'm in the minority here, but I actually see more harm than good from that story. I do have an extremely visceral reaction to it.
ReplyDeleteAnd wow. When worlds collide. I doubt I would have reacted as calmly in that situation.
I think that the parents who are keeping their child's gender a secret are a bit off base. If the two older siblings know the infant's gender and are instructed by the parents to avoid answering a question about it I think that this imposes an undue onus on those siblings.
ReplyDeleteParents need to be around for guidance, education and comfort. I would not have wanted my parents to make me a social experiment. I would not have done that to my kids.
Pat
This Storm thing reminds me of the work of psychologist B.F. Skinner, who used his small children in experiments of social isolation. He kept them from contact with their parents in the "Skinner Box", meeting their physical needs without human contact.
ReplyDeleteIt was creepy then, and this is creepy now. One doesn't change the world by messing up one child for a political/social point.