Multiple choice

When you were in school, what was your favorite type of question on a quiz? From elementary through high school I wanted true or false questions. I wanted answers to be a clear choice, and then, if I was simply guessing, the odds were 50/50. After true/false, I liked essays. Being a lover of words, I could extol on why an answer was clear cut, why what I was writing, with lots of flowery language and fillers, was correct. But, as I really learned, thought and matured in college, I grew to appreciate multiple choice questions, well, as long as the options included 'all of the above' or 'none of the above' or 'select all that apply.' I no longer wanted there to be only one answer.

Multiple choice, however, can take a long time to catch up with real life. I remember celebrating when the option of Ms. finally appeared in the column along with Miss and Mrs. and Mr. as a box you could check. I recently met someone who is using Mx. as a prefix and who wants to be gender neutral. So, as I continue to learn, think, and I hope mature, I accept that there are even more boxes that can be added. 

I'm grateful to be living in a time and a place where frequently there are lots of options for living our lives and lots of possible and correct answers and solutions to the challenges we face. I can appreciate that even when the answers that are correct for me and differ from the answers that are correct for you, we might find a spot on a continuum where we are both satisfied. I'm frustrated, however, that too often for the things that really count, I want to check 'none of the above.' 

There's a TV ad for DNA testing where a woman says she now selects 'other' on forms because she learned her ethnic background has made her much more than she thought she was. We are all more than we think we are in terms of having the potential to facilitate change. May we find the courage and energy to do what we can to ensure that multiple choices for who we want to be as individuals and as a society thrive for generations to come.

Marilyn