Always Pre-Read
A 'Fucked Up Moments in Fatherhood' Mini
I went to my son’s school today to read a book to his class. It’s something his teachers and administrators encourage and, as I’m self-employed, something I have the time for.
And so I brought a beautiful book that we recently checked out from the library about the life of the artist David Hockney.
For those of you who don’t know, Hockney is a gay man. And this book covers that. Which is great, because it’s a kid’s book and normalizing LGBTQ+ relationships from an early age is a good thing. However, I know not everyone feels this way and I’m sure plenty of my son’s classmate’s parents wouldn’t be too pleased that I was reading a book about gay men to their six-year-olds (not that I give a fuck. Grow up. But the last thing I want is for my kid’s teacher to field angry phone calls and emails on my behalf).
Anyway. I got about halfway through a paragraph about how Hockney developed first crush on another boy at a Boy Scout camp before pausing and looking out into the small sea of a dozen six-year-old-faces, eagerly awaiting the next line, and deciding, “You know what … we’re just gonna skip this page.”
Lesson learned: when reading to kids who aren’t yours, always pre-read the book.
Here’s the book. Check it out. It’s beautiful. Read it to your kids. Especially the parts where Hockney realizes his authentic self.