One of the reasons that I began this blog was to serve as a sort of a diary of my life and my family. I thought that it would be kind of neat in the years to come to revisit things that had happened, especially those involving my children. (Links to some of the older posts will be provided below.)
What I didn't realize was just how much blog fodder there would be. These children provide an enormous amount, far too much to ever record. So I try to hit the more interesting parts. It'd be nice to hit it all, but there is only so much time in the day.
As a point of reference I asked my parents if I was as inquisitive as my children are. They laughed and said yes. My mother made a point of telling me that my pre-school teachers said that I had one of the most active imaginations of any child they had ever met. It appears that I passed both of these attributes down, which is why you get to read another story about body parts and creative names for them.
If you are a long time reader you know that my son and I seem to be engaged in a never ending conversation about our bodies, sex and everything that goes along with. The questions are innocent enough. There is nothing in there that makes me worry about him, but he does make it challenging. I don't want to lie to him, but I don't need to provide all of the details.
Here is a recent transcript of one of those conversations.
Son: Dad, do you know what a boner is. (Said with a big Cheshire cat grin.)
Dad: Yes, I do.
Son: It is when your penis grows bigger.
Dad: Yes. You can call it an erection.
Son: An erection?
Dad: Yes, an erection. It is not related to an erector set.
Son: What is an erector set?
Dad: It is a toy that you may get when you turn eight.
Son: Ok. Do all boys get boners?
Dad: Yes.
Son: Why?
Dad: (Pause as I decide whether to rehash this conversation.) Remember our conversation about making babies?
Son: Yes. But I still have questions.
Dad: Like what.
Son: Can you do tricks with your boner?
(Quick comment. I have to bite my lip so that I don't give an answer like: Sure, I can put out fires, swing hula hoops from it and use it for batting practice.)
Dad: What sorts of tricks are you talking about? (The old answer a question with a question is a beautiful parenting trick.)
Son: Can you make it dance?
Dad: Sure. I can even make it sing. You ought to see me in the shower. (Relax, I didn't really sat that either.)
Son: When it grows I can make it move.
Dad: Well that means that you are perfectly normal. All boys can do that.
Son: (Whispering) When I have one it is hard to pee.
Dad: (Whispering back) Me too.
Son: Do you think girls wish they had a penis?
Dad: (I so very badly want to make a crack about penis envy.) Nah, they are happy with what they have.
Later on I'll have to post part two of this conversation. In the meantime if you are interested you can find more of these tales by clicking on the children label.
4 comments:
B"H I understand why you avoided the real answer to the question of penis envy. It wasn't necessary, and he was bound to mention it to your wife, getting ou into trouble, right?
Karen Horney (Yes, that's her real name) suggested that penis-envy is related to the position of power men have traditionally held in society relative to women, and not to anatomy.
She makes a good point.
I tend to see things more traditionally here. But it is up to women to become at peace with their own bodies,...thus "...she'asani kirtzono."
No question that the phallus is a symbol of power. Just take a look at nuclear war heads. Even in Tana"kh swords are recognized as kli zayan, supporting the connection between weaponry and the penis.
Women find other (sneaky) ways of trying to control other people's penises, as a form of acting out their penis envy.
I await the onslaught of denigration, castigation and threats of castration (thus proving my point).
Aren't you glad of my new work schedule which allows me the luxury of sitting around and commenting on your blog, Jack?
Do you think girls wish they had a penis?
The ones I know? Every minute of every day...
:oD>
Don't your kids ask questions about other body parts? toenails or something?
Dance, eh?
Heheheee!
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