Oh, how idyllic it sounds. Listening to the crashing waves, so closely mimicking the sound of your potential crashing down around you. Lazily wasting the summer away in a glow of youth, while your ankles swell to the size of tree trunks and stretch marks sprout like roots across your belly. Ah, childhood.
As I’m sure you’ve guessed by now, I’m (not so subtly) mocking the seven or eight high school sophomores from Gloucester (pronounced “GLAW-ster” for all you non-Bostonians out there) who made a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together. I actually grew up not far from Gloucester, but my town was continents away in mindset. My town had a VERY high percentage of Jews and, as such, there were very few teen pregnancies. No Jewish girl would dare get knocked up before finishing college, let alone high school. Ever. We had Jewish mothers to answer to! And believe me, when they get mad, it isn’t pretty.
Anyway, these girls in Gloucester thought it would be “exciting” to raise babies together. To me, this sounds like a really, really bad idea for a club. What happened to debate? Or band? Or good old-fashioned drinking behind the bleachers and using protection while you (sort of) had sex? On a side note, I do wonder if they’ll get a page in the yearbook for this one. I was editor of my yearbook back in the day and believe me, I would have *definitely* featured them.
Seriously, though, I do find this story pretty damn sad. At such a young age, these girls have made a decision that all but locks them into a mediocre life. It’s unlikely they’ll attend or finish college. Their earning potential will be limited. They may very well raise their babies without the support of the fathers. And, pretty soon, they’ll realize that having a baby isn’t like having a pet. It’s not a game and it’s not something to do when they feel like it. It’s a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week, 365 day a year JOB. For the babies’ sakes, I just hope these kiddos are up to the challenge.
8 responses so far ↓
1 JenW // Jun 24, 2008 at 4:17 pm
OMG- that is horrifying to me. The last thing I wanted at that age was a baby!!!
2 Lindsay // Jun 24, 2008 at 6:31 pm
Apparently one of the girls was interviewed this morning on Good Morning America. I would’ve loved to have seen it. Nerd alert: I was also Editor of my Yearbook as well as Secretary of the Physics Club. I’m afraid if we ever get the boys together, they’ll talk alternatives to cellulose fuels and the coefficient of friction.
3 Erica // Jun 24, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Jen - Tell me about it. At 16, I was all about getting more freedom - not tying myself down!
Lindsay - Have no fear, Gavin’s nerd indoctrination has already begun. On a side note, I almost became a physics major in college.
4 Lindsay // Jun 25, 2008 at 5:30 pm
Well, let’s get our little nerds together then! I love physics. I fear for our future. Noah keeps pulling “Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer” off our bookshelf.
5 Patricia // Jun 28, 2008 at 8:44 pm
They obviously hadn’t seen the new TV show called “The Baby Borrowers.” That surely would have kept them pregnancy-free.
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