Sometimes I wonder how much of that is me, and how much of that is just me wanting to be different.

Because I like being different. I don’t want to be predictable. Don’t want to do what people might assume or expect just because of my gender. I like the idea that women can be a lot of things, and most of those aren’t what people would think. I like surprising people by the fact that I can carry a couple of weeks’ worth of clothes on an airplane, while most people would expect a girl to overpack to the extreme. I like shopping at Home Depot and knowing what the heck I’m doing. I like being included in the poker game (yes, this has happened). But even though I like and thrive on being different, when I think about it I don’t think that’s my reason for it. It just is.

I was talking to someone at church today, and she mentioned she remembered our big screen TV from last year’s Super Bowl party, and asked if Jason was enjoying watching football on it these days. (Don’t ask me how our TV came up in the conversation. This girl tends to ask you very random things). I said, no, as a matter of fact he doesn’t care about football at all, but that I was a huge fan. She laughed like that was the oddest thing ever mentioned. I was almost annoyed. Since when can’t a girl like football?

I’ll admit I was bugged by a women’s dinner at church awhile back, where the dinner was an assortment of salads. I wanted to ask, where’s the chicken fried steak? I mean, I like salads and all, but why do people think that’s all that women want to eat? Can you imagine if they served those same salads at the men’s dinner? I have to chuckle just thinking about it.

I think that all of us are precious individuals, and while there are certain roles that are God-intended to be separated by gender, I think there are way too many stereotypes out there, within the church and out.

So come watch the football game with me. Let’s get the girls together for some Texas Hold ‘Em. And I’ll bring some hot wings.