Mistaken Identity

For some reason people keep mistaking me for being younger than I really am. When I was a child, I wanted to look and feel older. I no longer have that need, but at the age of 23, after graduating from university and getting engaged, I find it more than a little annoying to be mistaken for some one who qualifies for the 12 and under discount.

It was annoying when I was asked my age at a PG-13 movie. (I was 17, holding car keys, and standing next to my 12 year old brother, but they asked me my age, not him.) It was annoying when my younger brother’s middle school teacher asked me if I would be joining his class soon. (My brother is 5 years younger than me, and I was in college at the time.) It was annoying last year when I was out for drinks with a couple friends, and the waiter wasn’t convinced my I.D. was real. It was annoying last month when I volunteered to help in the nursery at church and they didn’t put me on the list because they were waiting to find an adult volunteer to pair with me. I mean, come on people! I have been an adult for over 5 years now. And I haven't been 12 for well over eleven years!! You'd think that some one as boring and serious as me would be mistaken for older, not younger.

Some people suggest that it is my height, or lack of it, that leads to the confusion. But seriously, I am not that little (5 ft-3in). My friend, Akin, is shorter than I am and she isn’t mistaken for a pre-teen. A couple friends suggested that the problem is my lack of makeup. Others suggest the culprit is, as Akin loving calls it, my baby blonde hair. But I can think of plenty of bleached blonde bimbos that no one mistakes for children. Perhaps I am just missing the super-sized chest to go with the hair?

I have experienced years of these mistakes, and I still don’t understand. My family is just as perplexed as I am (only they also think it is hilarious and frequently find opportunities to tease me about it). My fiancé is totally freaked out by all of this. He just turned 30, and now fears he is some kind of perv for planning to marry what appears to be a 15 year old.

I guess I had better start wearing makeup and stilettos.