"Remote Control Robots"

Monday

We have another group of volunteers this week.  Due to a mix-up about when they were coming, the volunteers were at the warehouse by themselves for about an hour yesterday.  Meghan (TBPM staff member from Calvin) was with them, and she called Nancy to figure out what to have them work on.  They cleaned up around the warehouse until we got back from the market.  At the market we a little pineapple for the first time this summer!

When we got back, we unloaded, then sorted baby potatoes and onions.  These potato boxes were some of the worst that I've seen this summer.  They may have been sitting around for awhile though, since they were sitting in the warehouse over the weekend.  Most of the kids were reluctant to stick their hands into the box, so they were slowly picking out baby potatoes one by one.  Some of the guys were challenging one another's 'manliness' over who was willing to handle the nasty potatoes.  I had no idea that manhood had anything to do with potatoes...

For a couple months during my senior year of high school, my church youth group divided by gender for the lessons.  The guys were supposed to be learning what it meant to be a (godly) man.  Despite devoting many weeks of discussion and teaching to it, I don't think those lessons gave me any kind of answer.   If I had to make a stab at an explanation, my first attempt would involve loving deeply, especially loving God and one's family.  That doesn't seem to answer the question, though, as I would hope that women would feel called to that same role.  Is there really some sort of special office deigning how men should aspire to live that is different from how women should aspire to live?  There are plenty of stereotypes about each gender, certainly, but there are plenty of sterotype breakers as well (take the mechanic/carpenter/jack-of-all trades Nancy for example).  It seems like most artificial definitions of manhood are thinly disguised chauvinistic jabs.  I can't think of too many times when I have heard women told, "Come on, be a woman!" but I have heard the reverse said often.

If someone could offer up a good definition of manhood (or womanhood) I would be glad to hear it.  (Yes, there are the obvious biological differences, but of course that's not what I'm talking about).