Gender differences

Two children, both two and a half; one male, one female. Newfound social awareness and communication skills conspiring to finally create a playdate more participatory than parallel. A Cozy Coupe car.

Evan pushed as his friend rode shotgun. Together, they traversed the yard, giggling and whispering to each other. The other mother and I sat on the sidelines watching and smiling at their antics, both a little bit relieved and a little bit sad not to be needed for the moment. The kids' teamwork was seamless, their enthusiasm contagious. Until then they got stuck up against the fence at the edge of the yard, and found themselves no longer able to roll smoothly along.

Suddenly, the children were dramatically divided in their approaches. Evan began to back up the car this way and that, attempting wild 3-point turns from every angle he thought might solve the problem. His strategy was somewhat less than effective, but his resolve was strong. Meanwhile, Kerry sat in the car, refusing to help with the extraction process. Instead, she waved wildly at the grownups on the other end of the yard, yelling "Help!" as she waited for someone to come rescue her.

Evan looked at Kerry as if she was crazy. Why ask for help? his expression seemed to say. Kerry looked at Evan as if he was crazy. What's brute force going to do for us here? her expression seemed to say. And then without another word, they both walked off in opposite directions, a male and a female completely unable to come to any sort of agreement about how to get the job done.