Pet Peeve: "You're too young..."

We know. We get it. Just like Brigham Young knew this was the place. Just like we know there’s another divorce looming in Hollywood. The big secret’s out: Brooke and I look young.

Gasp! Is it really true? Can we finally see it just like everyone else? What took us so long to come to such an obvious conclusion?

Can you sense the sarcasm? Something tells me even after making such a bold declaratrion regarding our physical features, it’s not going to stop the many strangers at the local grocery store, or many friends, or even family members from feeling it necessary to tell us how young we look. Or better yet, to tell us that we’re "too young" to be doing something.

We’re too young to be married. We’re too young to have a son. We’re too young to be watching PG-13 movies. As you can imagine, we’ve heard it all, and there’s no sign the comments will cease anytime in the near future.

I guess what bothers Brooke and I the most about the daily “too young” comments, and the many blatant stares we get in our direction is that these same people have obvious physical ailments, or look to be in questionable living conditions themselves. Take the cashier at Dan’s grocery store for instance, who recently told Brooke, “you’re too young to have a baby,” and then followed up the comment by looking down at her wedding ring and shaking his head disgustedly. I guess we’re just supposed to overlook the fact that this man was a 50-something bachelor with nostrils full of overgrown hair, and who looked more depressed than a scene in the movie Crash.

Or take the guy who recently turned to me and said, “you shouldn’t have any kids, man, what are you 12-years old?” This coming from a guy who’s over 300 pounds and eating fried chicken for lunch. Am I missing something there?

Maybe Brooke and I are overreacting. Maybe this is a silly pet peeve. But, as in anybody’s case, unfair judgments based upon someone’s physical appearance eventually take their toll. It might even one day incite an unfriendly verbal response. So, next time you see Brooke or myself, be sure to tell us we look exactly the age our years indicate (25, 22). Otherwise, you could be the one who’s on the other side of the judgment parade :)...