Have You Ever Experienced Something From an Adult That Confused You as a Child?

I have been reading stories of how older women have said something to younger girls that kept them wondering, "Was this necessary?"

Growing up as a young girl, I was always called 'pencil bumbum' by friends or classmates who tried to tease me. Honestly, I never saw anything wrong with the description, and I moved with the flow. I was just happy I would inherit my mother's shape. Before this incident I'm about to explain, I had never felt weird about my body; it felt totally normal.

This fateful Sunday, I attended a different mass from my parents. It was the 8:30 am mass, and I was happy to have the feeling of independence. Finally, I didn't have to sit at the front with my parents like our usual family tradition. I even sat with a friend; double excitement.

The mass was going well and it was about to come to an end when this woman tapped me, let's call her Mama Nnukwu because that's what she's popularly known as. "Stand well and stop popping your bumbum, don't you know you'll attract men?" she said to me. Before she said this, I thought maybe she wanted to ask me why I was at the back or where my parents were; because everyone in our estate knew our family tradition. Hearing this from her baffled me. I was a smart kid and kind of self-aware so I knew this was inappropriate coming from a woman. Thoughts kept flying in my head like "Why would this respected woman say such a thing? Why would she think that a small girl like me wanted to tempt a man? Besides I wasn't leaning on anything, I was literally standing straight." Before I could recover from the experience she was gone. I wanted to go after her and show her that my bumbum was natural. That I wasn't trying to seduce anyone. That I was a girl just existing. Then I remembered that in my estate, as long as you were respected in church, no one would believe my words. Not even my parents would if things were to escalate because I would be called disrespectful for challenging an older woman who has contributed many services to the church. Till today I stay away from this woman. I have experienced another traumatic event from this woman but that would be a story for another day. Enjoy the rest of the day.

This is not fiction.

Stephanie's Thoughts n' Yaps.