Four year olds are the greatest most pure people in the entire world.
Recently I've been catching some flack from people about my parenting. B has been in the middle of every nit pick and that really breaks my heart.
I was tossing around the idea of putting him into gymnastics. He has so much energy and I thought it was a wonderful way to waste it. I just knew he'd love to flip and attempt to balance on a beam. Not to mention those motor skills would one day come in handy. I mentioned this idea around a few family members and immediately got some really rude feedback. B and I both were told how sissy gymnastics was and how it was only for girls. Fast forward a week or so and we're heading to Disney. I allowed both boys to choose their own Mickey ear's shirt and B wanted Alice.
Chance wasn't to thrilled and we tried to change B's mind. Sticking true to himself, he chose Alice. She is one of my personal favorites so I was rather tickeled. Once again, we caught a bunch of flack. Apparently Alice is just for girls and we should have made him choose something else.
It's sad, so very very sad. My four year old doesn't understand these ideas. People are attempting to change who he is and make him a judgemental person. I know that isn't their intentions but things rub off on a four year old. This is one of the only moments in his life that he can be himself without being teased. He isn't in highschool, he's surrounded by pre-schoolers that don't understand gender roles. He can play with babies and wear a dress without his peers making fun of him. I want to preserve that.
When B started pre-school he chose a little girl to be his friend. They've been in school for a month and she is his only friend. They're stuck like glue and I'm so happy for them. I recently ran across a little bit of her story. She is a very poor little girl whose mother is in jail. She comes to school dirty and tattered quite often but my child looks past that. His brain isn't warped by societies 'rules' and social norms. He chose this little girl because he liked who she was. Not because she had the coolest toys or the newest fad in clothing.
I love that about younger children. They're still so pure and able to developed their own opinions without pressure. They haven't been exposed to the horrors of judgement that we as adults are subjected to. I have all intentions to raise B without judgement and gender norms. If we want the world to be a better place we need to start with our children. Or maybe there isn't anywhere to start? Maybe we should back off and allow them to continue with their thoughts and feelings. Imagine how much better our world would be if people valued personalities and didn't see the material things.
