Bringing up our sons like our daughters: Is it too much to ask?

Early morning as I sipped my tea and browsed through my Facebook timeline, I read a post on one of the "Mom" groups I follow. The post was as follows (and I quote verbatim):

One of my students, is about to play the nationals in football. When she broke the news yesterday, naturally there were cheers all around, except for a boy. He just could not believe that girls could play football and this good.
Bend it like Beckam has not reached his house obviously.
This response is surprising as he is part of an affluent society and has travelled abroad.
Somethings can never change? I refuse to believe!
Can we as Mothers, do our bit for gender bending?
No saying " Don't cry like a girl!"
"Don't sit like a boy! Sit like a lady!"
"Don't be a wimp!"
"What are you doing with needles and thread?That is a girl's domain"
"Learn to cook! What will happen to you after marriage?"
"Bulk up! You are a boy!! And Ditch those hideous pastels"
"Watch your weight! Be dainty and dress in pretty pinks"
Bunkum!
Teach both boys and girls to be life ready. Teach them how to budget, cook, wash, iron, mop and dust.

Image courtesy: Google search

Just as I read through the post, I realised that it is very easy for me to appreciate what had been written and even practice it because I am a mother of a girl. As our society gets educated and mindsets change, we start equating our girls with boys and bring them up like boys. I never tell my daughter to sit like a girl, not play heavy-duty sports or learn to cook. I do tell her that you'll have to learn to drive when you grow up and look for a job and be independent. But, I think that is the easy part - bringing up our daughters like our sons; calling them beta or "you are a son to me". The difficult part is bringing up our boys like girls. I think as mothers, it is our duty to ensure that we sensitise our sons also like our daughters. THAT I think is the more important bit and that is yet to happen even in the educated society.

In fact, as I browsed through the comments of the said post, I noticed how all people - and all were WOMEN themselves - were only talking about how they are ensuring that their daughters are being raised like sons. Not a single lady mentioned how their sons are being raised like daughters. It's kind of sad to me.

We have to realise that the responsibility of equality is equally if not more on a mother of a son. The whole dynamics of our society as it exists today has to change and the mothers will eventually have to pick up this baton to bring this change; especially the mothers of boys.