Ahh! Better late than never (I hope)
Yesterday my cousin and her roommates (two of my really good friends) were visiting and we were sitting around my kitchen table. We got onto the subject of having kids and my cousin remembered how when we were little we'd play the game Life all the time. There was one instance in which she had the misfortune of landing on every "You just had a baby!" square and ended up having so many kids that she couldn't fit them in her little plastic car. I remembered this vividly and laughed just as much as I had the night it happened, probably over ten years ago. I told everyone that she had so many plastic people that I had to take some of them in my car.
She reminded me, "Yeah, you told me, 'I'll take your dogs but you can keep all the kids in your car.'"
I suddenly remembered how normally when playing I would put my husband in a back seat and my dog would sit up front with me. As my cousin said, "She wouldn't just put the husband behind her, she'd put him waaay at the back of the car.'"
After thinking about these stories, I realized that I really have always been a feminist, even as a little girl. That's not to say that feminism is about hating men or children, but I think independence and non-conformity are both values I've always held.
This class gave me the opportunity to connect my experiences as a little girl to the feminism I celebrate today.
Like I said at the beginning of this semester, I had reservations about taking this class. I already had a busy schedule and the drive to Cocoa was not all that enticing. On top of that, girls' issues never really intrigued me. But looking back at my decision, I'm really glad I made the choice I did.
I didn't have the best time growing up and I tend to block out bad memories. But taking this class gave me a safe space in which I could revisit my childhood and teen years from a feminist lens.
I've enjoyed every women's studies course I've taken. I love being able to sit around a circle and, essentially, have a consciousness-raising session. But I think Girls' Studies is unique in its own right, for many reasons. On the one hand, it's such a new class and I think we're especially lucky to have it offered at UCF. But it also is unique in the way that it is so focused on one topic, and its one topic to which we can all relate. I loved sharing stories about grrrlhood. It's interesting to see how our unique experiences have influenced each of us, how we've all changed since those elementary/middle/even high school experiences, and how ultimately those experiences brought us to the same point in life.
Even though I learned more about my friends and became closer to them, I also learned about myself. I've been able to see how my own experiences have shaped me and I think that's made me a stronger feminist.
- Bianca
She reminded me, "Yeah, you told me, 'I'll take your dogs but you can keep all the kids in your car.'"
I suddenly remembered how normally when playing I would put my husband in a back seat and my dog would sit up front with me. As my cousin said, "She wouldn't just put the husband behind her, she'd put him waaay at the back of the car.'"
After thinking about these stories, I realized that I really have always been a feminist, even as a little girl. That's not to say that feminism is about hating men or children, but I think independence and non-conformity are both values I've always held.
This class gave me the opportunity to connect my experiences as a little girl to the feminism I celebrate today.
Like I said at the beginning of this semester, I had reservations about taking this class. I already had a busy schedule and the drive to Cocoa was not all that enticing. On top of that, girls' issues never really intrigued me. But looking back at my decision, I'm really glad I made the choice I did.
I didn't have the best time growing up and I tend to block out bad memories. But taking this class gave me a safe space in which I could revisit my childhood and teen years from a feminist lens.
I've enjoyed every women's studies course I've taken. I love being able to sit around a circle and, essentially, have a consciousness-raising session. But I think Girls' Studies is unique in its own right, for many reasons. On the one hand, it's such a new class and I think we're especially lucky to have it offered at UCF. But it also is unique in the way that it is so focused on one topic, and its one topic to which we can all relate. I loved sharing stories about grrrlhood. It's interesting to see how our unique experiences have influenced each of us, how we've all changed since those elementary/middle/even high school experiences, and how ultimately those experiences brought us to the same point in life.
Even though I learned more about my friends and became closer to them, I also learned about myself. I've been able to see how my own experiences have shaped me and I think that's made me a stronger feminist.
- Bianca
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