race

I think life has been such a blurr that I didn't even have time to think about the subject of race. But as time goes one, I"m more aware of looks and reactions to our family. Reactions range on all sides............So, whether you want it or now…….. let me offer you some thoughts and advice .....

I think that as we contemplated adoption for Aidan, we went to the best resource available----THE BIBLE.

No further research was needed.

God tells us to love one another. To love our neighbors as ourselves. He doesn’t say to love only the ones that look the way we do. See.........we've seemed to make this issue of 'race' into a big issue...........and it really isn't............AT ALL.

oh yes.............there ARE differences. But isn't that what we need to be CELEBRATING!!!

We are special because of how God made us........Period. We need to remind our children how creative God was when he made us all. We need to celebrate His creativity. There is beauty is wavy blonde hair, and there is beauty in beautiful brown skin.

It boils down to the same old topic...............people have always felt the need to prove they are better than someone else instead of embracing and celebrating their differences.......and Satan loves that.

But the good thing is.............you and I can choose for ourselves not to live that way. We can choose to love everyone and demonstrate that love through the way we live our lives. We can choose to not follow what the world views as ‘less than’ or 'better than'- and instead acknowledge that we are ALL precious in his sight.

You see............He see's our differences- He made us different on purpose. Not so we could fight over them but so that we could celebrate Him. Celebrate His creativeness and see those differences as beautiful- the way He does.

Oh......and TALK to your kids about differences. I came across this paragraph and summary of a quote in a book. (Nurtureshock)

How to Raise a Racist

Step One: Don’t talk about race. Don’t point out skin color. Be “color blind.”

Step Two: Actually, that’s it. There is no Step Two.

Congratulations! Your children are well on their way to believing that [insert your race here] is better than everybody else.

What NurtureShock discovered, through various studies, was that most white parents don’t ever talk to their kids about race. The rule is that because we want our kids to be color-blind, we don’t point out skin color. We’ll say things like “everybody’s equal” but find it hard to be more specific than that. If our kids point out somebody who looks different, we shush them and tell them it’s rude to talk about it.

It's kind of like the sex talk. If we never talk to our kids about sex, they are gonna have to figure it out on their own. Which will probably lead to some not-so-great influences filling in their gaps of knowledge.

So talk to your kids about race. Please. Have an ongoing and frank conversation, and observe their interactions with children who are different. Assume that they will have biases, and confront them when they emerge.

I will tell you that the only difference between Aidan and Samara and our other children is that they happens to have the most beautiful dark skin I have ever seen. Just like our other children- they has talents, dreams, and they has needs. They are full of life and full of personality. They make me smile every day............and there is much to celebrate!