A Club of Two
Dear Trendy Mom:
I'd like you to understand, that I choose to be a non-member of the "Club". I'm not a hip Momma with Lululemon clothing, big bling sunglasses, a tattoo for fashion purposes, and an iPhone with current pictures of my kiddos. My wardrobe is functional and relatively thrifty. I wear clip-ons when I drive. I think tattoos are a colossal waste of money for myself. And my husband and I share a Samsung "flip phone" with a no texting privileges. Where are the pictures of my kiddos? I have a few laminated gems in my wallet.
I am an old school, archaic parent in a techno-savy, fashion-conscience society. And frankly, it doesn't bother me if I am.
Or does it?
As I get older, I realize that the choices I have made on how I prefer to live have alienated me somewhat from others in my current stage of life (like you). For instance, when it comes to fashion and the other stereotypical things that interest women out there, I rather go for a hike than hit the outlet stores. Forget Disneyland or Las Vegas or all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean. Where is history or nature or authentic culture? As for social media, I am not in the "know" since I avoid Facebook like the plague. I catch myself hearing snippets of conversation around me that remind me of my disconnect. "Did you see what she posted on Facebook?" (Nope, I didn't.) Most days I let it slide and embrace my Zen state of minimal media contact. I cherish my quiet life devoid of the noise of my "Friend's" status updates. Other days I feel like an outsider who found out about the "news" when it was old.
Old. That's kind of how I'm feeling these days (and so many of you are so young!).
While I cannot discount that fact that I may still become friends with you, I acknowledge that it will be harder to find some commonalities to bind us together (other than being a Mother). My husband often feels the same way about the typical hunting/quading/"let's-round-up-some-cows" men in this region.
Thus, our observation and saying that my husband and I often quote to each other in comfort is: "We're... (sigh) different." Oh, I know there are people like us in the world. But I think we're rare. I dare not say we are "better" that you. We're... just... different..., odd and definitely not "cool". We are the kind of people who will discuss how Newtonian Mechanics was able to explain many phenomena 100 years ago, but how Einstein's Relatively was needed to explain situations where speeds approached the speed of light. We dissect the difference between the word "axiom" and "adage" while consulting an actual paper dictionary for reference. We mull over the fact that some things are just chance and God's Will had nothing to do with it (Christian heresy, I know). We shake our heads when we hear about another major misuse of cell phones by teenagers who find it exhilarating to post pictures (or videos) of very, very inappropriate situations on the world wide web. And we wonder, "What possessed us adults in entrusting such devices to kids whose prefrontal cortex is still developing? Are we really creating a safer world?"
Sometimes we do feel lonely (me moreso than him). But at least we have each other.
Welcome to our club of two. Care to join?
Sincerely,
A non-trendy Mother of Two
I'd like you to understand, that I choose to be a non-member of the "Club". I'm not a hip Momma with Lululemon clothing, big bling sunglasses, a tattoo for fashion purposes, and an iPhone with current pictures of my kiddos. My wardrobe is functional and relatively thrifty. I wear clip-ons when I drive. I think tattoos are a colossal waste of money for myself. And my husband and I share a Samsung "flip phone" with a no texting privileges. Where are the pictures of my kiddos? I have a few laminated gems in my wallet.
I am an old school, archaic parent in a techno-savy, fashion-conscience society. And frankly, it doesn't bother me if I am.
Or does it?
As I get older, I realize that the choices I have made on how I prefer to live have alienated me somewhat from others in my current stage of life (like you). For instance, when it comes to fashion and the other stereotypical things that interest women out there, I rather go for a hike than hit the outlet stores. Forget Disneyland or Las Vegas or all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean. Where is history or nature or authentic culture? As for social media, I am not in the "know" since I avoid Facebook like the plague. I catch myself hearing snippets of conversation around me that remind me of my disconnect. "Did you see what she posted on Facebook?" (Nope, I didn't.) Most days I let it slide and embrace my Zen state of minimal media contact. I cherish my quiet life devoid of the noise of my "Friend's" status updates. Other days I feel like an outsider who found out about the "news" when it was old.
Old. That's kind of how I'm feeling these days (and so many of you are so young!).
While I cannot discount that fact that I may still become friends with you, I acknowledge that it will be harder to find some commonalities to bind us together (other than being a Mother). My husband often feels the same way about the typical hunting/quading/"let's-round-up-some-cows" men in this region.
Thus, our observation and saying that my husband and I often quote to each other in comfort is: "We're... (sigh) different." Oh, I know there are people like us in the world. But I think we're rare. I dare not say we are "better" that you. We're... just... different..., odd and definitely not "cool". We are the kind of people who will discuss how Newtonian Mechanics was able to explain many phenomena 100 years ago, but how Einstein's Relatively was needed to explain situations where speeds approached the speed of light. We dissect the difference between the word "axiom" and "adage" while consulting an actual paper dictionary for reference. We mull over the fact that some things are just chance and God's Will had nothing to do with it (Christian heresy, I know). We shake our heads when we hear about another major misuse of cell phones by teenagers who find it exhilarating to post pictures (or videos) of very, very inappropriate situations on the world wide web. And we wonder, "What possessed us adults in entrusting such devices to kids whose prefrontal cortex is still developing? Are we really creating a safer world?"
Sometimes we do feel lonely (me moreso than him). But at least we have each other.
Welcome to our club of two. Care to join?
Sincerely,
A non-trendy Mother of Two