Men: Defined by their DNA. : Men

[Barbie]

What is it with men? Do women ever really know what goes on in their heads? Just when you think you’ve got a guy pegged? Wham, out of left field, they do something so totally unexpected, that you’re thinking to yourself, yeah, I could learn to like this (him).

Are you sure? By virtue of their very being, they are so yin and yang-ish, you know diametrically opposed. It’s part of their DNA. It’s a physiological fact: Women are pure bred; we’ve got the XX chromosomes. But men, in case you didn’t know, have got an X and a Y chromosome. Huh? How the heck did that happen? You’re going to be in even a bigger bucket of worms if your guy is a Gemini – the twins. Say one thing, do another.

But men, for better or for worse, are here to stay. While I know there’s a lot of joking going around that women don’t really need a man, all they need is their “boys,” that’s not entirely true. Imagine if this was Planet XX (otherwise known as a perfect world), who’s left to do the dirty work, the stuff women really don’t like or want to do, and who would we have to make fun of and roll our eyes at?

But I can’t disparage men, I love them. My family has more males than females, and it’s amazing, but even among siblings, every one of them is so different. One thing I do recall, about my own three brothers, is that even though personality-wise, they were very different creatures, and even though they’re primary pleasure in life was individually teasing and tormenting their wonderful older sister (me), to the point that I often prayed for salvation (from them), when it came to protecting me, I couldn’t have asked for any better body-guards. One day, the neighborhood bully, “Oogie Boogie” (guess why he was called that!), knocked me down in the street and I sprained my wrist. Within minutes of hearing my cries and seeing my tear-streaked face, my little brothers were out there forming their own posse of two, and dealt with that bully appropriately. He never bothered me again.

Men are protectors; it’s inherent, part of their DNA. I often don’t need protecting, I like to consider myself an independent woman, but on occasion, I find myself in need of protection, though I’d never come right out and ask for it. When that happens, it’s always a guy who actively steps in. Yes, women will give me great advice, but men are ready to kick butt and/or solve the problem for me. Men can be great problem solvers, I’ve found. I think men can analyze the problem quicker than women, since they don’t do it from an emotional perspective, and men have a quicker response time. They’re ready for action at a moment’s notice.

There’s a guy I know who is, in all other respects, a really terrific man – smart, good looking, sexy, confident -- but he doesn’t have one sympathetic bone in his body. He’s got a “just deal with it” attitude, as regards all things. A few years back, he buried the dead pet of his wife; she was 8 months pregnant and going through an exceptionally difficult pregnancy and was very emotional. He discovered her pet, an old, much too fat, guinea pig, dead in it’s cage, and knowing his wife as he did (that she would get WAAAY too upset which wouldn’t be good for her or the baby), he wrapped the animal up in a cloth, and buried it in her flower garden; cleaned the cage and then went to his wife where he gently broke the news and held her while she wept. This is the same guy who never once had a nice thing to say about her pet, never voluntarily fed or watered it, or even talked to it. But he did that for his wife. Now, that’s a hero.

A protector is defined as a person who cares for persons or property. I tend to associate it with men, more than women. Don’t get me wrong, women can also be protectors; just take a look at a woman whose children are being threatened… like a She-Bear. Scary. But, men take protection to a whole new level, and I’m absolutely thankful for that.