A father and his two little daughters came down to go fishing at our lake-front public dock.
The bell rang as the door opened and I exited my office to greet them, although I had already seen them on the camera monitor screen as they came down the stairs.
“Could I get some bait?” the father asked. “Yeah, we need some bait,” the two identically dressed, pigtails tossing, without a doubt twin girls chimed in at exactly the same time.
Each of the little twin girls held their own matching pink fishing pole, each pole about half the size of the one holding it, and each wanted to be first to proudly demonstrate how the reel worked, each reel with flashing lights that sparkled with each crank of the handle, the kind that would probably scare a fish before it ever came near.
We were fresh out of worms for bait so I offered the dad a shovel so he could dig his own worms in our garden out front.
They hadn’t been out there on the dock five minutes before the girls came trooping back in and asked for a can.
“For worms?”
“No, for fish.”
“Wow, you’ve caught some already?”
“No, but dad says we plan to.”
Smiling at the girl’s – and their dad’s – enthusiasm I scrounged around and started to hand them an ordinary empty coffee can from the shop after first dumping out the odds and ends of nuts and bolts it contained.
“Do you have anything bigger?” said one. “Yeah, we want something bigger!” said the other.
My grin growing, I gave them an orange bucket, watching them then as they headed happily back out the door and skipped on down to the dock to rejoin their dad, pigtails bouncing, each of their hands grasping the handle of the bucket swinging between them.
And I was thinking, on this beautiful morning, as I rejoined my computer in my office, that those girls were going to achieve something of meaningful significance with their lives.
Not only because they’ve a dad who takes them fishing.
But also, because they’ve a dad who, before they’ve ever even caught a fish, instilled in them the belief that not only were they going to catch a fish, it would not be just any fish, but a fish worth taking home to show their mom.
Someday my guess is the husband they catch would likewise be the beneficiary of each of these girls’ formative fishing trip with their dad – that in life and in love neither scrounging around, nor ordinary, would do.
I find your comment about ‘the husband they catch’ as if the one and only role these girls will play in life is being a wife and mother. Perhaps one of these little girls will instead become a doctor, perhaps she may become president. Girls who learn to have a positive attitude as a child can broker that attitude and outlook into many other professions than being a domestic servant. By limiting the future of girls to the traditional role of womanhood you are falling for the trap of reenforcing the boys and girls, women and men, stereotypes promoted by mysogynistic people who feel threatened by anything they perceive as questioning their own masculinity. Instead of being secure in themselves and their abilities they seek to force others into subservient roles meant to feed their own frail ego.
What a shame you can’t enjoy the excitement of two young daughters enjoying the special time with their Dad. Why do you bring the feminist tripe to try and degrade the Father/Daughters experience. Can’t a woman also be a wife and a great jop fulfilled person at the same time!?
I would ask Diana to go back and read this story again. You missed an important line–before catching a husband–“these girls were going to achieve something of meaningful significance in their lives.”
If that father was stereotyping his girls, he probably would not be taking them fishing.
Mr. Anderson was also pointing out that they were probably so positive about themselves and their ability to achieve a goal (catching a fish in this instance) that they would be selective in their choice of a husband.
Positive women do not consider themselves domestic servants.
All couples, married or not, opposite, or same sex or not…unless you are wealthy enough to hire someone to do that which is needed to maintain a home, where you live must be maintained…couples decide who will do what mostly today by preference or availability in dividing what needs to be done.
Why do people couple? Natural attraction, love, respect for the other, mutual interest.
No one is forced to couple with another these days. It is no longer the 1800’s.
My husband was a bachelor for 14 years before we married, so he knew how to take care of a home himself. Nor are we young. We decided I would be the cook. Like all ‘chefs’ I enjoy it when he appreciates the meal I provide.
I thought it was great that father took time to share fishing with his girls, giving them exposure to an experience they wanted to have.
And–Mr. Anderson appreciated it also, look at the time he gave them when all they wanted was a bucket for worms.
Thank you, JoAnn! I agree 100%. I would ask why, from the whole story, would one decide it was anti feminist because the girls might, one day, decide to marry? The story is about believing in yourself. Surely that fits everyone’s “agenda”.