Things I teach my young son
• Girls are your equal. You are not better than them, they are not better than you.
• If you like a girl, don’t tease her, don’t make fun of her, don’t pull her hair. Those are not correct ways to show someone you care about them.
• When you are older, if you like a girl, you should do nice things for her. If she likes the nice things you do for her, ask her out on a date. If she says yes, take her on a date. If she says no, leave it at that.
• When you are older, don’t ever bother a girl who says no. She doesn’t owe you an explanation for anything she decides or doesn’t decide to do.
• As you grow older and grow up, you’ll become bigger, faster and stronger than most girls. Remember this whenever you interact with them, especially your little sister.
• Just because you might become bigger, faster and stronger than most girls, does not mean that they are weak in any way. It’s just the way Mother Nature put us together hundreds of thousands of years ago, giving each of us specific skill sets.
• Girls don’t ‘belong’ in the kitchen, and boys don’t ‘belong’ in the garage. Learn to cook, learn to sew, learn to wash your clothes, learn to dance, learn to host parties, learn to braid hair.
• Treat all girls with respect. The ones in your classroom, your aunts, your friends’ moms, your sister, me. Be kind, be helpful, be courteous.
• Hold the door. Chivalry might be dead, but being a gentleman isn’t.
• ALL girls are beautiful. Each one of them in their own way. Never forget this. If you hear anyone tearing down someone else’s appearance, stick up for them.
• Being a girl is more difficult than being a boy, and it will always be so. Remember this, and always try to keep this in mind.
• Never, ever, under any circumstance, hit, push, shove, kick or punch a girl. This might seem unfair at this very moment, but the truth is that you will grow big enough to make it an unfair fight not too long from now.
• Have your friends treat your little sister with respect. Today, tomorrow and always. And likewise, treat their sisters with the same dignity.
• Never leave a girl in a bad situation to fend for herself. She needs your help, so figure out the best and safest way and help her.
• Stand up for your little sister. Even though she is fierce and strong and needs no help right now, as you get older, she will find herself in more situations where having a big brother by her side will make her life easier and safer.
• If you are ever looking for a role model, a man who treats women the way they should be treated…look towards your dad.
One day, far away from now, you might have a son of your own, and I want him to be able to look no further than his own dad to see how to grow up to be a good man.
