Wednesday, September 15, 2010

that did not just happen...

At the end of the day I was delivering a little one to his dismissal line when I ran into a parent whose son I'd taught a few years back. When she saw me she gave me a hug and then grabbed both my hands.

"You have babies yet?" she asked, oblivious to the fact that
1) she saw me at the end of last year so if I'd managed to have babies over the summer it would be a feat of science
2) it was the end of the day and we were surrounded by parents, teachers and children. Surrounded.

"No?" she answers herself. "You don't want babies?" I glance around, trying to find a way to get out of this conversation without launching into the "well, I'm going to grad school to get my doctorate but when that's over in 5 years" explanation when she claps her hands together. Apparently my pause was all she needed as answer.

"You are TRYING!" she exclaims. "I'll pray for you, Mrs. Lipstick!" and she runs off, as every parent and student in the parking lot turns to look at me and my red face. The parents waiting for their children stare at me, and I find myself hoping, praying, that they do not speak English, or if they do know English they don't understand what "trying" really means. Especially since a few hours later I needed to welcome them into the classroom for Back to School Night and pretend they hadn't just overheard a conversation about my very-personal life.

3 comments:

Sarah said...

Ooooooh. That's a doozy! What ever has happened to social graces?!? :)

magpie said...

Moments like those are when it's gr8 to be male. Some parents get so pumped up at pick-up time that they turn into kids themselves and blurt anything out.

turtlemama said...

LOL! Honestly though, I can't believe you aren't asked this by parents, coworkers, and the postman on a continual basis. The day I got back from my honeymoon, the questions started coming from everyone including my pediatric patients parents, "When are you going to have a baby? You're working on it, aren't you?" Then, once we had our first, they wanted to know when the next one was coming. If she's the only one who has pried into your private life, people in NOVA are definitely much less nosy!!! You would NEVER get away with that here in Ch'ville. Best, Sarah