Creating a teachable moment

[marydell]

I haven't played The Game of Life in forever, but my brother plays it with his kids.


One of the milestones in the game is getting married. When he plays it--and based on his friends' FB comments I gather that a lot of people do it this way--he asks "should I marry a boy or a girl?" and then they talk about different types of families.  The pictured family is two dads and  their adopted daughter.   With 6 seats in the car I imagine a lot of families could be represented.

I wish every kid discovering their identity could take that journey *already knowing* that their parents will be happy with who they are. --Not just because "my parents love me no matter what" but because the whole family has grown up with a dialogue of exploration and acceptance.

Comments

[cakmpls.livejournal.com]

Your brother is obviously an awesome parent.

I don't think we ever played Life, but we said to our kids at every opportunity, starting when they were very young, "If you date, or get married or choose a partner, we don't care if the person is male or female, or what race, or whether they have disabilities. All we care about is how they treat you and feel about you and how you treat them and feel about them." (Thus hoping also to reinforce the "abusive relationships not OK" message.) And since they grew up knowing kids with two moms (never had the chance to meet one with two dads), and with gay couples next door, and with polyamorous families in our social group, I think they believed us.

[browngirl.livejournal.com]

I wish every kid discovering their identity could take that journey *already knowing* that their parents will be happy with who they are. --Not just because "my parents love me no matter what" but because the whole family has grown up with a dialogue of exploration and acceptance.

Amen. :)

[sanguinity]

Yes, it would be awesome if every kid knew that. And that what they thought they knew was for realz.

I thought I knew that about my parents; turned out that I didn't.

[marydell.livejournal.com]

Oh, no. That had to be a heartbreaking discovery.

I think I always knew my dad would forgive me for anything I did that he didn't approve of, but forgiveness isn't quite the same as acceptance.

[pixelfish.livejournal.com]

That's neat...and a good idea.

[ashnistrike.livejournal.com]

That's awesome.

[kcobweb.livejournal.com]

I love that my daughter is growing up in a state (MA) where she knows she can marry a boy or a girl, as she chooses. (Someday, she'll probably realize that this isn't true everywhere. For now, it's just her normal.)