Some time ago, I was with my kids as I went to get myself checked at a clinic due to my cough. After my checkup, I had to buy the meds that the doctor prescribed and had no choice but to bring my eldest son with me as I went inside Watson’s Pharmacy to purchase them.
You know how Pharmacy’s here have a lot of displays on their cashier counters? They would have anything and everything displayed near the cashier especially batteries, hand sanitizers, mints and gums, lip balms, and in Watson’s case, tons and tons of condoms of different brands.
As I was paying for my medicine, my kid looked at the display of products in front of him. And what do you know, he zoomed in on those small colorful boxes of frenzy condoms and asked in his normally loud voice – “Mommy, can you buy me frenzy?”. My jaw dropped and I immediately looked sheepishly at the one next in line, who happened to be a male by the way. I was sweaty and flushed and was tapping my foot impatiently as the lady behind the counter appeared to be taking too long in ringing up my purchase. Too long in fact that my son turned his attention from frenzy to trust. He even called out “Trust. Trust.” several times to my embarrassment. I told him, those were not candies and those were meant for daddies and not kids. He insisted for about one hundred times before giving in and it was only because the cashier had finished up with my purchase. I left Watsons in a hurry and sincerely wishing that would never happen again.
Now that my son is six years old, he is more and more curious about what things are and why things are what they are and most of the time I am unprepared for the questions that pop out of his mouth. Sometimes I feel like were on a stand up comedy show except my son is serious about his questions and I feel like a fool stumbling on my answers to them. Kids!
oh my god! this is sooo funny! wish i were there. and if i were, i would have explained to him what a condom is. i’m a firm believer that sex education should start very early, and yes, even as early as six. so that things like condoms, sexual organs, etc. are not seen as something embarrassing or something to make fun of. children would be more aware that things like these are taken seriously. it’s like teaching kids about jesus and all that stuff. notice that very few kids make fun of jesus? it’s just all these unnecessary taboo that we help create while kids are growing up. not that i’m comparing jesus to condoms (ok, i’m going to hell), but you get my drift, right?
and i realize also that the only reason i find this really funny is because of how we were brought up and all the bastos notions that goes with it. it’s really cute, and embarrassingly fun, but not really healthy. it all boils down to having a really backward and ignorant culture we all have. so let’s start changing things.
just my 2 cents of course. hehe.
i miss iggy.
Shine – Of course I could have handled it better but then again, maybe it was supposed to happen that way. And although I want all the same things you do, when it comes down to it and you are faced with life’s difficulties, sometimes your only choice is to turn to what has been taught to you over the years.