Boys and Girls

As I sit here eating my not-good-for-me-at-all lunch (of cheeseburger, onion rings and chocolate shake), and as I think back to my struggle last night between going to the gym versus sitting on my butt with a pint of icecream, I couldn't help but laugh about the conversation that Brooklyn and I had on our way to school this morning.

She told me that one of the boys called her a "poopy head" yesterday. And she was giggling about it. Oh, the wonder of boys and girls and what happens when they play together. Someday, she'll learn that when boys avoid her, it's not a good thing. Someday she will learn that when they say you are bothering them, that means that you are, and for some reason, they want their space. Someday, she will learn that when they run screaming in the opposite direction, you really don't want to chase them, lest you run up against a restraining order. Someday.

But for now, she is innocent, and has no clue what it means to be called a poopy head. This same boy was upset last week when his mom and I happened to be talking on our way out, the 4 of us walking together. He his behind her and said that we (Brooklyn and I) were "bothering" him because we were all walking together as we were talking. I had to laugh because just a few minutes later, he was shouting to B from the car (they were parked next to us), as we were getting ready to drive away. Ah, the fickleness of men's attentions.

I love that Brooklyn doesn't see gender, and that she sees everyone as her friend because she plays with them or they share a book. (That's not to say that it isn't hard to watch the boys reject her when they don't want to play with a girl.) But I hope that her open view of the world remains open, and innocent, at least for now. We can wait at least 2 or 3 years before they start breaking her heart and daddy has to start beating guys up, right?