Feb 2014
setting the stage:* *an elementary school art classroom of apprx. 20 first graders.
At the front stands the art teacher, and nearby, the art teacher's apprehensive assistant (who, as we will later learn, also happens to be her lover). Both teacher and assistant sport short, shaved heads and don 'mens' apparel.
'Friends, today we have an assistant here to help us finish our clay masks. Some of you know may know Coach L from soccer. Let's give her a warm hello.'
'Hi Coach L!' Twenty first graders scream.
What ensues? a result of the fact that children are naturally curious beings.
'ms. k, coach L is your son. right?'
no, she is four years younger, but i am pretty sure four-year-olds do not
yet have the ability to procreate
'she your daughter then?'
still no
'is that your brother?'
my brother lives in Wisconsin
'that ur sister?'
i don't have a sister
'ms. k. y'all twins?'
i don't have a twin
'she ur mom?'
my mom has curly hair like me
'your dad?'
my dad is much taller
'she your friend?'
...........................kinda like that
'you her aunt?'
'her uncle?'
'her grandma?'
'well that's ur cousin then.'
'cuz you both have short hair and those baggy
clothes and those holes in your ears and
that same tattoo on your wrist.'
no, and for the record she's not my uncle's brother's son's monkey twice-removed either
'i may not know what she is, but i know what she absolutely couldn't be.
she absolutely, most cetainly, never-ever could be your lover because my understanding is she's a she and you're a she.
....or she's a he and you're a he.
but either way that don't add up.'
At the front stands the art teacher, and nearby, the art teacher's apprehensive assistant (who, as we will later learn, also happens to be her lover). Both teacher and assistant sport short, shaved heads and don 'mens' apparel.
'Friends, today we have an assistant here to help us finish our clay masks. Some of you know may know Coach L from soccer. Let's give her a warm hello.'
'Hi Coach L!' Twenty first graders scream.
What ensues? a result of the fact that children are naturally curious beings.
'ms. k, coach L is your son. right?'
no, she is four years younger, but i am pretty sure four-year-olds do not
yet have the ability to procreate
'she your daughter then?'
still no
'is that your brother?'
my brother lives in Wisconsin
'that ur sister?'
i don't have a sister
'ms. k. y'all twins?'
i don't have a twin
'she ur mom?'
my mom has curly hair like me
'your dad?'
my dad is much taller
'she your friend?'
...........................kinda like that
'you her aunt?'
'her uncle?'
'her grandma?'
'well that's ur cousin then.'
'cuz you both have short hair and those baggy
clothes and those holes in your ears and
that same tattoo on your wrist.'
no, and for the record she's not my uncle's brother's son's monkey twice-removed either
'i may not know what she is, but i know what she absolutely couldn't be.
she absolutely, most cetainly, never-ever could be your lover because my understanding is she's a she and you're a she.
....or she's a he and you're a he.
but either way that don't add up.'
i never 'blame' my students for being curious. once they form a bond with me, they're totally okay with how i dress, act, and who i decide to be with. the problem lies in the media, parents, and other societal structures.
