Since the dawn of man, the existence of -isms could be found deep within the soul of each person. As an intricate and natural element that one may have a hard time getting rid of, the -isms played a huge role in shaping society. Racism, the belief that one race is superior to another, and sexism, the idea where one sex is superior to another, is just one of many. Even ageism, thinking that one age is inferior to another, still exists in our society today. America has worked long and hard to rid itself of the -isms.

Usually, the sex, age, or race that is being put down and portrayed as inferior seeks justice and equality. However, the same cannot be said for my parents. My mom is a sexist. She believes that the female gender is inferior to the male. My dad is an ageist; he believes that young people are stronger than the old. I asked them why they believed in these strange philosophies and they both replied that doctors and scientists everywhere in the world have proved it. I rebutted them with my amazing rhetorical skills but I just ended up getting yelled at.

The answer to why they believed in sexism and ageism came to me after hurricane Ike stormed through Houston. The hurricane violently removed a portion of the roof and my mom asked me to make some immediate minor repairs to sustain it before professionals could fix it in time. After working for about five hours in the hot sun, I asked my parents why they couldn’t come up and lend me a hand. I explained to them that if we worked together, the job would get done much faster. My mom looked away from the television and explained to me why she couldn’t help fix the roof.

“I am just a woman while you are a strong, young, and healthy boy. Why would you want to place the entire burden on me, a weak and fragile lady? I am also not as smart as you because you are a boy, I can’t figure out how to hammer in some nails in random areas on the roof!”

The answer to why my mom was a sexist against her own gender struck me like a bullet. The thought of what she said invoked flashbacks to past events where she used the same excuse to get me to do all of the work while she watched television. I fell for her guilt trip so I left her to her television. Afterwards, I went into the kitchen and asked my dad for help. I explained to him how if we worked together, things would get finished quicker. He looked up from his plate of food and explained to me why he couldn’t help fix the roof.

“I am just a old man while you are a strong, young, and healthy boy. Why would you want to place the entire burden on me, a weak and fragile old man? I am also not as smart as you because you are young, I can’t figure out how to hammer in some nails in random areas on the roof!” And with that, the 51-year-old man went back to eating my sandwich.

I ended up fixing the whole roof by myself and making another sandwich for lunch. I now understood why my parents were sexist and ageist in such peculiar ways. Seeing them made me want to be sexist and ageist too. How does this sound for an excuse?

“I’m just a young boy and immature boy. How can you expect me to vacuum the house, mow the lawn, do the dishes, make the sandwiches, fix the roof, and clean the toilet? I’m too under-developed for any work.”