Now Playing: The Oldest Boy On the Block
When does a boy finally become a man? Is it the day he stops the vicious cycle of meaningless sex with his ex-girlfriends? The moment he reaches into his pocket at the bar and realizes he’s already spent his rent money? Perhaps it’s the second he stands up to his friend for something he believes in. When does a boy finally become a man? When the woman he loves finally sees him as one. I’ve wondered many times why the boys I grew up beside were never capable of respecting women. One woman is a man’s mother, sister, lover, friend; one woman can be these things to many men. How could you possibly differentiate between them? I can only assume that if you do not respect your mother than you will never respect the woman you love and if you’re incapable of respect for your sister than obviously your female friends will always come second. Unfortunately men, it will not be another man that thrusts you into adulthood. That inspiration comes only from loving something more than you love yourself. The love of a woman and the respect of a woman will mean more to you than the opinion of any boyhood friend. When you work sixty hours a week and come home to $400 gas bills and rent you know you won’t be able to pay until the fifth of the month, well you wonder why you even bother. You should have stayed in school, had a mountain of casual sex, and of course a drinking problem, only to graduate hating yourself and your future occupation. But you’re happy and you’re unwilling to sacrifice that happiness for the ease of a well-paying nine to five job. But I will tell you one thing…. I am tired, I am tired of waking up everyday to a half an hour commute on public transportation only to find myself at a job where I am underpaid and underappreciated, a job that requires me to serve the public for eight hours a day. And honestly, my view of humanity disgusts me, and I expect much more from the people I’ve chosen to have in my life rather than those I am forced to interact with on a daily basis. Unfortunately I can’t teach the boys I’ve grown up with to respect me, because they never will, those boys have rules and creeds they live and die by, and not even the most intelligent, unique lady in the bunch could erase years and years of their insecurities. To work so hard and to have so little respect from the men in your life is a constant obstacle for me. Luckily I have the respect of two of them, and they are the only two who matter. My father and my boyfriend understand how hard I work, and why some days I’m sad and what it’s like not to be able to afford every other night out. My father expects a lot from me, my boyfriend only expects me to make him laugh and make him happy… yet I’m rarely ever a disappointment to either of them. Apparently I’m only a disappointment to the boys who will never respect me. All I can say is that I hope one day you love some woman so much that you’ll finally begin acting like a man. You’ll stand up for her rather than agreeing for the sake of agreement, and for the first time, as a man, you won’t question your motives.