Boy mothers

Many years ago, I stood in the aisle at some big-box store, wondering which super hero Santa had promised my son for Christmas.  After a few minutes, i tossed a couple of power rangers into the cart.  At about that time, a teenaged clerk approached me.  Ma’am, he said, You’ve been standing there a long time — did you get what you want?

No, I snapped.  I wanted a girl.

His look of horror still haunts me.

A few years later, Patrick started 5th grade at St. Peter’s Elementary, his first foray into ‘real’ school after two years at Purple Dragon and four years at PS1, an ungraded one-room-type school with thirty children.  I wanted him to have a good adjustment, so I threw myself into making our little household fully vested in the  process.  I signed myself up to participate in the potluck for the 5th grade mothers, and even took a day off from work to cook.

I stood in the kitchen chatting, munching on carrots.  Two blonds with coordinated sweaters and skirts turned their cool gazes on me.  So, who’s YOUR fifth grader? one chirped.  I replied with the name that my son had decided to adopt for his new school:  “Pat.”  They looked quizzically at each other, then said, I don’t remember meeting anyone named Patty at orientation; what does she look like?

I explained:  Patrick“Pat” is short for “Patrick”.

They rolled their eyes and exchanged meaningful glances.  Oh, you’re in the wrong room, honey; these are the girl moms.  You should be in the living room with the boy moms.

I backed away from the pair of them.

Tonight I spent several delightful hours with Jessica Genzer, who has the honor of being both a “girl mom” and a “boy mom”.  We took her son Addao to Waldo Pizza to celebrate his twelfth birthday.  Afterwards, Jessica and I nibbled Dove Chocolate while Addao dug into a beautiful Chocolate Decadence Cake.  Then the two of them went for a run while I pretended to exercise upstairs, missing my boy, wondering how he is, hoping that he is well, so glad after all that I got to be a boy mom.

Jessica and Addao

Jessica and Addao

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