To the editor:
I gave birth to my first daughter this spring. My husband grew up in Marblehead, and we are temporarily staying with his mom as we adjust to parenthood and get some renovations done at our home. The coastline and neighborhoods of Marblehead have been places I enjoyed walking in my final weeks of pregnancy, and until recently, my first few weeks of motherhood with my little one — when weather and outerwear allow.
On a sunny but windy afternoon, on Sunday, April 2, I put my daughter in a baby carrier and zipped my oversized fleece around her and I. Baby gets to stay warm and sleep, mom gets fresh air and some exercise. As I began walking on the causeway towards the Neck, a silver Saab drove by full of teenagers. One stuck his head at the window and said, “What the f*** is that? Look at that fat f***!”
For sure, five weeks post-partum I haven’t lost all of my “baby weight,” and maybe the large lump under my jacket jarred this delicate teenager of his ideal that all women should be thin — especially those who are about to be near the Neck — but shame on me for having expectations as a woman, new mom and innocent walker, that I could take a Sunday afternoon stroll. Too bad this also occurred two days after the conclusion of Women’s History Month. To anyone out there with an outfit, body type or general appearance that could make someone else say “What the f*** is that?” keep on walking and keep the others asking those big life questions. I hope those boys had a wonderful Sunday afternoon.
Alayna Tress
Atlantic Avenue
