The Grandmothers To Be

Last week the real machatunim met.  Yes, it's true my previous posting used the word machatunim wrong.  There really is no Yiddish word for the mother of the surrogate carrying your baby.  Guess the Yiddish language couldn't keep up with the changin' times.  The machatunim is really the relationship between the parents of the two children who are in the relationship.

The last night we were all together we went out to dinner.  There were seven of us and we were sitting at a long table.  My mother and Derek's mother were at one end across from each other.  I was having my own conversation so I only heard bits and pieces of their conversation, but I loved what I heard.

I know they were talking about having to explain their sons' situation to their friends.  It's something I hadn't thought about too much, but I get that explaining that their gay son is in a relationship with another man and they're asking a stranger to donate eggs and another stranger to carry their babies isn't always the easiest topic to bring up to people in their 60s, 70s or 80s.  Of course they're thrilled to be grandmothers, but at the same time there is a "coming out" process for them too and their joy in telling people becomes more apparent every day.

They talked about how wrong it is for anyone to judge them or their sons.  They have announced to the world that they will be grandmothers.  They are proud of what their children are doing.  (Yes, Mom, I was eavesdropping a little.)

In a world where some families hide, don't talk about, don't talk to, or punish their children for being gay, it's nice to know that we have some pretty awesome mothers -- and fathers too.