Thursday, March 8, 2012

The F-word.

Freak. 

As in, "Mom, lets get out of here...that girl is a freak.  She's looking for GRASSHOPPERS..."

Now I'm getting used to the odd looks and the occasional snide quips, but it's a different kind of hurt when someone says it about your kid.

Brooklyn absolutely loves making friends with random strangers.  I consider it a talent--one that I in no way came from me.  I love watching her do her thing and thrive off of a shared connection with another child as they run off playing Tag or Hide And Seek, a trail of giggles behind them.  But she has never once been up against the ominous Clique of Girls.

Well today was that day.  They were a bit older, but no more than a year (they said they were 6 1/2), and were talking about LMFAO, "Sexy And I Know It", and skinny jeans.  And then enters Brooklyn.

"Hi guys!  Want to try my pogo stick??"

Eye rolls.  Whispers.  They all turn their backs to her and walk away.

She kept trying, with different tactics--commenting on the music blaring from someones Ipod, or just standing there quietly, or inviting them to play different games.  They finally got sick of it and went to the head mom, who was sitting no more than 4 feet from me and made the original comment.  The mom stumbled for some words, talking about being nice and "just go play."

Reason #9471093 for homeschooling. 
Brooklyn has no clue who LMFAO is, what "Sexy And I Know It" is or even what skinny jeans are!  And it's okay--because she is SIX.  She should be hunting for grasshoppers, drawing in the dirt with sticks, playing Tag and having grass fights.  Not worrying about fitting in.

I asked her as we were leaving later on what she thought of the girls.  Her only comment was that they didn't seem to want to play with her--they just kept walking away.  That was it.  No frustration or resentment or irritation...although I am experiencing enough for both of us I think, lol.  Gotta love that momma-bear syndrome.

Anyway, in truth, this was about a half-hour out of an entirely fantastic day full of shaving cream fights, shaving cream art, running through the sprinklers, snorkeling in the tub, researching bengal tigers (the most dangerous large cat), grass fights, pogo-sticking, scootering, game playing, cartooning, imagining...

Therefore, venting done.  Off to snuggle and enjoy the rest of this great day!

3 comments:

  1. Emelie Madel-TonerMarch 8, 2012 at 6:25 PM

    I wish you were here to play on the beach with us!

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  2. All I can say is: "What horrible little girls." I am so happy that Mynnie and Jack are nothing like that and they are the same as Brooklyn and want to make friends with everyone they meet and sometimes I have to explain that not everyone is like us and not to take it personally. I thought it was funny when Mynnie had some homework regarding technology and the teacher wrote: "DSI and WII?" on the paper and I'm not even sure I've got that right but I said to Mynnie: "Do you think we should tell your teacher we don't know what that is?" I have one of the oldest and crappiest cells ever but I don't care as I don't need anything more than something that can send messages and make calls :) So what. And I love that Jack wants to be a tree and I don't care that he licked and kissed one today. I love it. I didn't even know about the song until I volunteered to go throught the 5th grade questionnaires and that song kept appearing as a favorite. No way are Mynnie and Jack ever going to be exposed to something like that. I don't care what everyone else is into. I've always told them that different is good and they like it too. You're one of the most wonderful moms ever! xx

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  3. you are a very good mother trista, i have been you at that moment in time , on my own trip across the planet.this is part of it being harder to raise smart children than dumb ones. you are absolutely right, she should be collecting bugs and collecting rocks.linda, adam , violet, sam and Brooklyn give us much to work with and we are lucky to have them.

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