My father actually told my mother that he was uanble to get girls pregnant because of a childhood accident with a bike. My mother, although a fairly intelligent (book smart) young lady, believed him--believed in him.
At the age of 18, my mother became a mother and a wife because of her beliefs. She wore a plain white dress that she made, and my father wore a powder blue tuxedo that she also made (it was the 70s so it can be excused).
When my sister was born my paternal grandmother swore that my sister could not be my father's child. She insisted that it was impossible because my sister was born with fairly dark skin, while all Nicholson babies were born very pale with a more caucasian appearance.
When I was born, I was considered acceptable to my grandmother, until I learned to talk and think. My problem was not that I didn't look like them, but that I didn't act like them. To them, I will never be anything more than Ms. Piggy and a mama's girl