Choices We Make !
Its march break and my daughter is enjoying her time at home , ready for a week long vacation to Cuba. Like me, or like most girls, she enjoys shopping. My husband says, only God knows how you ladies manage day long shopping. Since it’s vacation time, and time for some sunshine after months of snow in Toronto , she is happy buying swim wear, some more clothes specific to Cuban weather.
I took her to Eaton centre thinking she will be glad with options she will have to buy.
But, to my surprise she asked me something unexpected.
All these years I have been telling her being a girl doesn’t make her weak, doesn’t make her inferior to anyone. She has all the power and strength to achieve what she desires to, provided she has the will power to achieve it.
I have been careful making choices related to her diet, education, future plans but somewhere forgot in all these, I was unknowingly lowering the confidence I was trying to build up on the other end.
Coming back to our shopping time,she picked up a t shirt from boy’s section with the images of characters of The Avengers. Immediately, I said , darling, it’s not for you. It’s for boys. To which she said, is it because it has super heroes imprinted on it ?
If boys can wear it, why not me, mom ?
You always say and so does our teacher, boys and girls are equal. So why the difference in such a basic thing ,the attire ?
I was clueless and so was the shopping associate helping her in choosing her clothes. I suddenly remembered the time I was still pregnant, me and my husband went shopping for our to be born baby. We didn’t find the gender, so thought of buying some gender neutral clothes.
After her birth, we went on to buy flowery, pink stuff. Today I realise the simplest choices though they seem, yet they have strong and deep impact on our kids. Was I wrong in getting carried away by the media propaganda of blue and pink ? May be yes, but it’s learning time for me and good it has come early.