I have a son that loves ballet. He’s 3 and loves to dance. I could beat him, because ballet is arbitrarily "girly, " or I could encourage him to do things he loves.
I am much more interested in him being a kind, well-rounded person than I am interested in him being someone else’s stereotype of a man.
I kind of still dislike some of the even more nuanced discussion around gender because it’s goal can still be to categorize. More precisely, but still occasionally hurtful. I would love for everyone to be happy as they are, undefined by anyone but themselves. I’ve known people who came through so many awful experiences, and some found comfort in the group acceptance of a new gender definition, but the ones I know who are happiest eventually shrug that off entirely and find full self-acceptance. It’s so hard to do, and not everyone can, but gender acceptance is only a stepping stone in the path to self-acceptance.
Maybe if there were a story in a book about people not listening to NOAA and they were destroyed in a massive flood. Maybe, just maybe, that would help them understand.