Emily has bought a doll with her own money, a doll that is always sick. She earned $19 over time helping mother fold clothes and clean. Touch a spoon to Suzie's mouth and she says "that medicine is yucky." Humorous, at first.
Notice, however, that this dolly is never going to get better. You can take care of her and treat her all you want, it won't help. Damned depressing, I would think. Though four-year-olds do like predictability, I grant. But I spent so much energy making sure my sons never became social workers, and now the sun goes dark before my eyes.
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I suppose you can't find her a doll that says, "That medicine has some drawbacks, but I'm going to endure them cheerfully (or at least stoically) in the knowledge that it's my best chance for returning as soon as possible to a full, normal, satisfying life; thank you, Doctor"?
I wonder if the memory chip is reprogrammable.
But I spent so much energy making sure my sons never became social workers, and now the sun goes dark before my eyes.
Your family genes may have a proclivity towards social workers. Of my paternal grandparents' seven grandchildren, six of them followed professions of which one could say that yes, either our grandmother or grandfather was good at the skills needed in that profession. The influence had to be genetic, because most of the grandchildren were raised too far away for the grandparents to be no more than occasional visitors.
But the tendencies to follow those professions were generally not visible at four years old. Recall all the kids who want to be firemen.
It may just be that children of that age practice what they see as what is specific to their gender. Such as many girls of that age liking to wear dresses.
I wouldn't worry too much about it.
Speaking of cross skills: one of my cousins is an artist of sorts. She has exhibited and sold her paintings, does a lot of quilting, and also has a picture framing business. As an artist, she has good hand-eye coordination. A neighbor of hers told her she would make a good backhoe operator. I have seen some similar great exhibitions of hand-eye coordination from tool pushers handling drilling rig equipment. Hand-eye coordination. I'ts a skill I don't have much of. She takes after our grandmother. My number sense takes after our grandfather.
I'm surprised they don't have a doll programmed to take medicine and say "Mmmm, this Obamacare tastes great! I feel life is a lot more fair now!"
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