It was time to undo the braids on Claire, my daughter’s hair as they had become untidy having carried them for three weeks already. As I began loosening them, I would stand up every once in a while to attend to my cooking. One of my sons seemed to notice that Mummy was trying to juggle a lot and asked if he could help with loosening his sister’s hair.  I smiled and agreed.

One tug at his sister’s hair and there was a yell from her.  “Please stop, boys do not know how to loosen hair”, she screamed. He shrugged, apologized and continued. I smiled at both of them and explained that anything could be learned if you put your mind to it; regardless of gender or even age. Thankfully, we were done in no time. The incidence got me wondering where my daughter picked up on that from especially because such gender stereotypes were discouraged in our home especially when it came to chores.

Many of the categorizations that we have today exist for the sake of order. They are an attempt to explain our shared views and understanding of any subject matter. They are not and cannot account for the behavioural patterns of the minority whose configurations may be different. Many subjects, theories and concepts do not exist in absolutes but as a spectrum. Considerations should be given to people who are at various stages of the curve just as it is with methodologies of learning.

I am sometimes in disbelief at the spontaneity with which I pick up on any and every situation with the intent to learn from it. I do not intend to sound philosophical at all. On the contrary!  However, I find myself often critically examining things. My quest for understanding has led me to question many things. As there exist so many colours, I believe that life allows and offers us the beauty of interpreting our experiences. Since our interpretations are in fact our realities, we ought to be intentional with them.

This post is not targeted at rationalizing the countless philosophies and ideologies that exist. I do not aim to justify any view point nor disagree with beliefs long held. It is however about realizing that we may not always have all of the answers that we seek but it is of advantage to ask regardless. We often seek to be understood; it would be great if we sought to understand others too. Sometimes we cannot help our choices, likes or things we navigate towards. At such times, let us be guided by what long-term effects those things would have on us to determine if we should accommodate or discard them.

 

 

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