Joe's Turn 3: The Women Who Made Me
With my birthday approaching on March 8, Peter has once again handed me the keys to Vertes’Verities for my annual guest appearance. This year, instead of making fun of Peter, which remains extremely easy, I’m exploring how I have spent my life surrounded by women. I grew up with five older sisters. Five. I learned early that democracy does not work when you are consistently outnumbered. One of my oldest sisters once said we were more like “cousins,” which felt about right given the age gap and emotional distance. EARLY IMMERSION Family road trips were my introduction to hierarchy. On long drives to Florida, my sisters claimed the entire back seat because they were “car sick,” leaving me wedged between my parents in the front seat for fifteen hours at a stretch. At home, bathroom use followed a similar pattern. We had two, but one was clearly premium real estate reserved for my sisters, while I used what could best be described as the auxiliary facility. Inclusion in my sisters’ a...
