Growing up I was but one of the many boys/men that had the Farrah Fawcett swimsuit poster smiling from my wall. I didn’t think much of it until Sunday, when doing a little holiday shopping.
Mind you I’m no prude but, especially as a Dad, I cringe a little when I walk my pre-teen daughter past the Victoria’s Secret partly due to the well shot, yet risqué, photos meticulously hung all over the storefront…but I guess they are displaying what they essentially sell. But as I walked into Abercrombie & Fitch (I’m quite certain it was the kids section), the ever so carefully cropped, flagrant photos of their male, teen-ish models were difficult to ignore.
At an age for my daughter when sexuality is slowly entering her world, it must be difficult for her to understand what the limits should be for her. As it’s not uncommon for her to hear that some friends are starting to “date” and she’s aware that certain changes are inevitably around the corner, I could understand her confusion. And it must be difficult for her to even formulate the necessary questions when boundaries are pushed all around her or the flip side, wherein the subject is too taboo for some to even address.
This is why, it’s so very important for parents to open up to their kids about what’s acceptable for them. Because if we don’t communicate with them about sex and sexuality, what they see out there will dictate what the norm “should” be and then ladies & gentlemen, we have a problem.
