Clay Aiken And His New "Gaybie"

Call me out of touch, but I have heard the name Clay Aiken numerous times but I could never point to his picture in a lineup and identify him. I guess I am not up on pop culture?

What I did find interesting was the cover of People magazine and his assertion that he is gay. To add to the message, he is holding his new "gaybie", Parker. I am happy he came out, and I am happy his son (conceived through in vitro fertilization) will have a father who is honest about his sexual orientation. My worry is that like so many things in pop culture, Parker is a fad.

I am seeing "gaybies" everywhere. Though I have no problem with gay and lesbian couples having children, the sudden explosion of them has all the earmarks of a passing fad. Much like the glut of Shar Pei puppies a few years ago or the even stranger pot bellied pig phenomenon, I fear that once the excitement of being a parent wears off, lots of kids will be neglected or become the burden that leads to dysfunctional childhoods.

Of course this may be no different than what happened during my generation, when the baby boom saw an army of strollers on every corner as returning servicemen and women made pregnancy a national pastime. Lots of kids from my generation grew up in families that found raising children was more work than they bargained for.

Perhaps the new "gaybie" boom may be different. After all for a gay or lesbian couple to have a baby there is a lot more work going into that decision than for a straight couple to conceive. Maybe gay and lesbian parents will have considered all the responsibilities and problems raising a child can bring. If so, they will make fine parents.

My worry is the whole celebrity thing, and if Aiken's child is just a fad, what will he do with the new life he has now become responsible for? My hope is he will grow in his maturity enough to make a good parent and find in himself the strength to make the right decisions in raising his son.

Babies are not just pets that can be dropped off at the local shelter when you are tired of them. I guess that is a lesson everyone needs to learn.