Writing the Self 4: Spider-Man

I run into the kitchen with excitement. A big smile crosses my face as I see my mom finishing up my birthday cake. Its got red and blue icing and looks big enough to feed all my friends and family twice! I take a closer look and notice what something sitting on top of the cake. It is a small red and blue vehicle with my favourite super-hero sitting on top of it. Spider-Man! The smile grows even bigger on my face. I love Spider-Man so much. The toy on the cake matches my Spider-Man shirt and Spider-Man shorts. I cant wait to blow out the candles.

"Can we eat it soon so I can play with the Spider-Man toy?" I ask my mom. "Soon. How about we do presents first?" she replies. I nod enthusiastically and go to living room where my family sits. I look at all the beautifully wrapped presents. Some are in bags with Super-Heroes covering the front with blue and red tissue sticking out. Some of them are in boxes with more Spider-Man wrapping or birthday paper that I cant wait to tear open.

I grab the biggest bag first and rip out the flimsy tissue paper to reveal a Spider-Man laser tag set from my cousins. Each set has a vest, goggles, and a web-blaster that has Spider-Man on it. One set is blue, the other is red. I am so happy that my cheeks are starting to hurt from smiling. How did they know I liked Spider-Man so much? My mom must have told them. I want to go outside and start playing with my new toy right now, but my mom tells me I have to finish opening presents before I can do that. I sit back down and put the laser tag set a side. The next few presents are nothing compared to the laser tag set. I get some new superhero t-shirts and toys for the most part.

The last present I have to open is inside a pink bag with pink, frilly tissue paper. The card tells me that it is from my Granny. I open it up to reveal a Cinderella Barbie with a pumpkin carriage. What am I supposed to do with this? I dont have any Barbie's, just superheroes. I guess I can give it to my sister to play with since she likes Barbie's and Bratz dolls a lot. My Granny is waiting for my reaction, and I notice that the smile has left my face. My mom always tells me to be polite and tell people thank you for the gifts, even if I don't like them. I put a smile back on my face and go give my Granny a hug and thank you.

Once I am back in my seat, I throw on my goggles, my vest, and my web-blaster so I can wear it while I eat my Spider-Man cake.

Comments

  1. Hillary MoffattMay 29, 2019 at 2:21 PM

    Kelsey,

    Your story was fantastic. Your writing was descriptive and organized and the voice in your story made me really feel as though I was inside the head of a child who is so excited about her Spider Man birthday. I am curious if you faced any other adverse reactions to wanting a Spider Man birthday over a more traditionally “girly” birthday party theme. It seems as though your Mom was very supportive of you choosing this theme, you mentioned a sister in this story, did she feel the same way? Your story really made me reflect on the gender norms that are presented to children from such a young age. Parents opt to paint a nursery a specific colour depending on the sex of their children before they are even born and you have demonstrated that gender norms and the toys, interests and characteristics associated with these norms are very stereotypical and do not represent the likes and dislikes of every child. I think children should be able to just play with toys regardless if they are traditionally depicted as being more feminine or masculine and your story really shows why this is important. Fabulous job Kelsey! I really enjoyed reading this one. (:

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