So a lot has happened, I’ve watched every ted talk on porn there is, I own a million books on talking to your kids about sex, I have gone down the rabbit hole (no pun intended) of sexual constructs, porn addiction, the ways in which parents and kids learn and take on info and the importance of creativity in facilitating education. It’s time to do something. My fav catchphrase, well one of them, is “it’s in the doing” and I think it’s so true. I need to do something, I can’t just keep reading and and asking myself the same questions so the brief to stage a mini- intervention is perfect right now.
So, to that end I am making some workshops to try and talk to real life humans. I am holding four workshops for parents where I will show them art, artists and imagery as starting points, that explores certain ideas and then will facilitate conversations around those themes to gain insight into where parents are at, what they think, feel and understand, what their needs are and what they’re feeling worried, uncomfortable or unsure about. The workshops will cover conversations about: virginity as a Construct, masturbation as empowerment, Raunch Culture and Porn. I sent the invite to all my networks, promised them wine and a good time (always a winner!), prepped loads of info and found some great relevant Art to use. I have been inundated with requests to come along, as always, parents are desperate to share and learn about this stuff, particularly as the new RSE curriculum is being rolled out in schools this year and started this term. I can’t actually accommodate everyone so will have to think about maybe doing more if I have time but I wanted to get the majority done before the end of term in order to be ready to think about the next step during the independent study period.
The interesting thing here is also that I have heard from only one dad. I think there is a conversation to be had about why this stuff falls under the umbrella of the unpaid labour that women do in the home and in particular with regard to childcare. Also it raises questions of how men and dads would prefer to approach it, maybe holding space in a different way is required, creating different resources and even using different prompts. But unless they are willing to talk to me I am not sure how I will learn what those answers may be. For now I’ll ask their wives and hope to gain to clarity on what to do about involving and supporting dads. I have offered the one dad who emailed me a bespoke workshop if he can muster up some more interest and I will have to think about finding a man to help me facilitate perhaps also. Hopefully this initial process will show me a way forward with this also.