Is it possible to shift the dialogue when it comes to teaching masculinity to boys? “Boys don’t cry.” Excuse me? My 5-year-old son is boldly repeating what his best buddy had told him in class after falling over and hurting his leg. “Of course boys cry, if they are in pain or upset about something,” […]
With our father gone, Mom’s greatest fear was that she would be a white woman who didn’t know how to raise black kids; that we would be lost, adrift with no culture, no community. “Hold still.” “Mom, you’re hurting me!” “I am not. Hold still or your headwrap won’t look right.” “I don’t want to […]
I realize that my answers to these questions could shape my daughter’s entire attitude toward her own body and self-image because I am, essentially, her living role model. I knew the day would come. The dreaded moment when my daughter would question the things I do in the bathroom, in front of the mirror, or […]
If they adopted my beliefs, that felt like winning; if they chose different beliefs over mine, that felt like losing. Turns out, there’s a little bit of tyrant in every patriarch. My wife, two daughters, and I were playing LifeStories. Unlike the board games I grew up on, which encouraged you to covet real estate, sink battleships, […]
Marriage is not a destination. It’s one small thing that can happen in the larger journey of a relationship. “When you get married, you’ll be a great husband…” “When you get married, I’ll be so proud of you…” These are not statements I’ll be making to our children. Why? I think we need to start […]
My son casually commented that my skin was “peach-color” and daddy’s skin was “brown.” I looked at him in the rearview mirror and asked, “What color is your skin?” Mrs. E., my high school’s college counselor, called me “Little White Wendy.” I was a regular visitor to her office, searching for scholarship opportunities that would […]
I do not want to raise my daughter to believe that she is only worthy of praise when her experience of the world is palatable to others. Last week, my nine-month-old daughter flew on a plane for the first time. We packed a ludicrous volume of snacks and toys into our carry-on bag, and it […]
Do you have a burning question about pregnancy, modern parenting, or family life? Send it to Evie at AskEvieColumn@gmail.com or click here to submit your question anonymously. Dear Evie, My husband and I have been married for five years and we just had a baby son. He doesn’t sleep through the night yet and things at […]
