Gender

I have never felt “genderized” because I have grown up in a home where my parents have encouraged me and I could do anything that I set my mind to. My parent’s roles around the house are not always typical. It is often assumed that the man of the house does the yard work and the woman does the work inside. My dad can be found doing the dishes and my mom can be found mowing the lawn. They raised me in a similar fashion. If I wanted to play soccer, I was encouraged to do so, and if I wanted to wear pants instead of a dress that was okay too. One of my favorite toys growing up was Stretch Armstrong while my Barbies sat in the corner. In terms of school, I was not like the author in the second passage where because of her height she was chosen last for things in P.E. I have always been very short, but was actually very athletic and was usually chosen first. Even today, my parents instill the values of “you can do anything,” and that doesn’t stop me from doing something a boy may do or a girl may do. I think had I grown up in a different time such as the 1950s and 1960s there would have been less opportunity for me to branch out and try the things that boys were “supposed” to do.