Cleaning Crayons
So, It has been known from time to time, that I come on here to have a rant about stuff that annoys me. Believe me, lots of stuff gets on my nerves. Anyway this time it's about a comment that a child in school made the other day. Don't get me wrong, I don't blame her and I didn't let her see that it annoyed me, but it did so here I am!
We had just finished our small group activity and we were cleaning up. The small group activity was colouring work sheets, using crayons and pencils. One little girl was watching everything I was doing. I decided to wash down the table as there was some crayon on it. I rubbed it with the cloth, but the crayon didn't come off. Quick as you like, she says " You can't do that, you need a Daddy to do that" Now she's only four years old, so this remark wasn't really something that she could have made up herself. It was obviously something that had been said to her outside of school. Well, I was disgusted! But I kept it together and simply said to her "No, I don't need a daddy to do that, I just need a different cloth" So I went and got another cloth and rubbed the crayon until it came off. And yes, I used my annoyance to generate extra elbow grease! Then I showed her that it was all gone and she was amazed that I could do this job without the help of a daddy.
It made me think though. You know I never thought of myself as a feminist. I am however fiercely independent and self sufficient. I am the person in the house that does the D.I.Y. I am the organiser in my family. I am the driver. I make all the decisions. I'm so independent sometimes my husband finds it difficult. Do I believe men and women are equal? There's no doubt that some are more equal than others! Would I try anything a man would try? You bet your ass I would.(Even to the point of peeing while standing!) I am so glad that I have brought my children up to respect the sexes and their abilities. If nothing else this incident made me realise how careful we have to be when making seemingly off the cuff remarks to our young people. Even subconsciously we can sow the seeds of doubt for later in life.
SharonAnn
We had just finished our small group activity and we were cleaning up. The small group activity was colouring work sheets, using crayons and pencils. One little girl was watching everything I was doing. I decided to wash down the table as there was some crayon on it. I rubbed it with the cloth, but the crayon didn't come off. Quick as you like, she says " You can't do that, you need a Daddy to do that" Now she's only four years old, so this remark wasn't really something that she could have made up herself. It was obviously something that had been said to her outside of school. Well, I was disgusted! But I kept it together and simply said to her "No, I don't need a daddy to do that, I just need a different cloth" So I went and got another cloth and rubbed the crayon until it came off. And yes, I used my annoyance to generate extra elbow grease! Then I showed her that it was all gone and she was amazed that I could do this job without the help of a daddy.
It made me think though. You know I never thought of myself as a feminist. I am however fiercely independent and self sufficient. I am the person in the house that does the D.I.Y. I am the organiser in my family. I am the driver. I make all the decisions. I'm so independent sometimes my husband finds it difficult. Do I believe men and women are equal? There's no doubt that some are more equal than others! Would I try anything a man would try? You bet your ass I would.(Even to the point of peeing while standing!) I am so glad that I have brought my children up to respect the sexes and their abilities. If nothing else this incident made me realise how careful we have to be when making seemingly off the cuff remarks to our young people. Even subconsciously we can sow the seeds of doubt for later in life.
SharonAnn
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