Answering questions about oneself sucks

Travellers have always aroused curiosity among the locals. Apart from the general questions about origin and destination, sometimes we’ve had to face more personal questions, like, ‘If you’re married, why aren’t you wearing a ring?’ ‘Why don’t you have children?’ ‘Do a lot of women in your country shave their heads too?’, etc.

I’m not a terribly social person (I’m an extrovert, but an antisocial extrovert) but, out of politeness, I try to answer as much as can, and I´ve sometimes used the chance to generalise about women in Spain or women in Europe.

Now, with generalisation comes a danger and a responsibility too. I was talking about this with Tomás, our last Argentinian WarmShower guest. If I were to talk to, say, indigenous women in Argentina, how would I share my message in an effective way? I cannot say, for instance (mainly because it isn’t totally true) that in Spain or in Europe women and men are equal, we wear and do what we want, we live and have sex with men without needing to be married and we have access to birth control to the extent that we can abort if we want. In substance I could say this and I would’t be lying, but what’s the message I would convey if I didn’t give more information than just that? Shouldn’t I say too that many people disapprove with these liberties, that there are huuuuge differences not only among countries, but even among regions, that education about sex, emotional welfare and contraception is needed from early childhood to be able to take informed decisions about how you want to lead your adult life later on? Shouldn’t I add, for instance, that legal limits to abortion differ enormously among countries and it’s still terribly stigmatised?

I worry a lot lately about what I want to tell women out there, and I’m thinking about which is the right dose of information, how much I want to tell about my own life and my observations about the lives of others.

For your own reflection, do not miss this interesting video about the gender paradox, and other related topics, in industrialised countries.