"So, do you know much about the father?" is something I get asked often.
"You mean donor" I correct. "Father implies a relationship. The donor is not a father to LJ. He doesn't have a father." I explain.
'Father' seems to slip off the tongue of family and friends effortlessly without any thought. I've repeated the same conversation what feels like a hundred times with them.
"It's not fair to LJ, GGF or the donor. You must learn to use the right language" I tell them.
"Yes, yes, I know" they flippently respond, making the same error again next time they have a question, which simply angers me.
LJ is too young to understand the conversation, but at some point he won't be. I want those close to him to be less careless for his sake and that of his relationship with GGF.
There will come a point when people outside our immediate family and friends will ask LJ directly about 'Daddy', because of an automatic and pervasive assumption that everyone is in a heterosexual relationship and all children are raised in one. So it feels even more important that those close to us, who know us and our family, get it right.
