Parenting

My son will be 8 soon. He asked me the other night what it meant to be gay. I explained it in the simplest terms possible. He said, "I don't get it. Kids at school say something is gay is they think it is stupid - but why would ga mean stupid if it's about love? That doesn't make any sense." Then he wanted me to list all our friends who are gay.

We've talked about same-sex marriage before, but he just hadn't put it together that same-sex couples are gay. To him, they're just people and people should be able to get married if they want to.

We're lucky to live in a very diverse community. Every day he is with people of many religions, many races, many levels of ability.

His best friend actually has Asperger's.

For my son, it's not about being tolerant - it's just what is.

He also prides himself on being agnostic. He has his own definition of being agnostic. To him it means that he doesn't have to pick just one religion and he can celebrate every religious holiday.