JenniferDyer.net

By Jennifer Dyer

Sex. It’s everywhere, all the time. Yet, how come the same person who can talk and joke about IT turns blue in the face, breaks out into a sweat, and stutters when his or her kids ask a few questions?

Yes, talking to your kids, especially the ones you helped create with IT, can bring up a few matters you’d rather not share, but sex is one of God’s greatest gifts. And there are plenty of people around, so it does not look as though IT is going out of style anytime soon. So, what to do?

This week a friend shared the “sex” talk she’d had with her seven-year-old son. Their conversation went so well I asked if I could share it with the world.

The topic came up when she came home from the hospital after a hysterectomy. She and her husband explained to the kids that mommy had an operation and one of the results was that she would have no more babies.

Her eldest son asked, “What a minute? How did the babies get in there in the first place?”

She replied: “That happens through sex. When a man and woman love each other they get married. Once they’re married, sex is one of the ways God gave them to show how much they love each other.”

“And what is sex?”

She explained the mechanics. “Sex happens when a man puts his penis into a woman’s vagina. God gave the man special cells, called semen, which can make a baby when they get into a woman’s body and mix with the cells in the mom’s body called eggs. The baby grows in the uterus.”

Her son thought about this for quite a while then asked. “And how does all this happen? Do you do it in a doctor’s office?”

My friend, with her wonderful sense of humor, replied, “You could, I suppose, if you were into that sort of thing, but usually people have sex in their bedrooms. That’s why mommy and daddy lock their door sometimes. Sex is private time between a husband and wife.”

He left the room and went downstairs, where my friend’s husband took over. “So, son, do you have any questions?”

He shook his head. “I just don’t get it.”

Dad answered, “That’s fine. You’ll have more questions as you grow older, and you know you can always come to us.”

I admire my friend’s ability to share from her heart without embarrassment. I think her children will grow up with a healthy attitude about sex, and they certainly need someone to contrast the messages sent through other sources.

What I am wondering, though, is what they are going to say the next time their door is locked and their son yells, “Hey, Mom and Dad. Are you having some of your private time?”

For another mom’s story, read: http://www.momlifetoday.com/2010/10/talking-to-our-kids-about-sex/