A Mild Case of Deja Vu

Yesterday in the car, while driving home from Karate, my eldest son says to me, “Mom, what’s a hooker?” I nearly choked on my hamburger. (We did quick take out for dinner. I know, I’m a bad Mom.)

I could tell. It was going to be one of these ‘rear view mirror’ conversations again.

After asking him where he heard it, in what context, etc., etc., I decided it was time to tell him. (I never did get a real straight answer on where he heard it, but I couldn’t very well let him wander around using the word. God only knows if he thought it might deal with helping someone get naked in a restaurant.) We need to start carrying his dictionary in the car. Coincidentally, just 5 minutes before he had asked me what the word solicit meant. I think it was from the drive through… there is a sign that says ‘No soliciting’.

So I finally tell him what a hooker is, a woman who sells her body for sex to a man. Period. Then I started thinking, “Wow. Where do I stop with this? Should I tell him about turning tricks and Johns?” But I used restraint and refrained.

At the end though, I could not help myself. I said, “Hey, remember when you asked me a couple minutes ago what the word solicits meant? Well, if we were going to use that in a sentence we might say, ‘the hooker solicits sex for a living.’.” He was quiet. I may have emotionally scarred him… I don’t know.

Bet I wouldn’t win any big points with his language arts teacher for that one.

By the way, my sister is completely appalled that my son now knows about sex AND hookers… but… still believes in the Easter Bunny. I seem to be OK with that.