Red & Yellow, Black & White – They are precious in His sight

The struggle of racism is one that has been on my mind A LOT lately.

 I am confident that in the future we will have children who will look very different than us and I think because of that realization; I am starting to become much more aware of the thoughts and actions that take place around me.

Racism is a constant battle that minorities face and one that EVERYONE must be prepared to encounter and react to in a positive way. As a born & bred Miami – Hispanic – girl, I have always been somewhat immune to seeing racism in action. I lived in a cultural melting pot and my closest group of girl friends in high school is the most diverse circle I have ever known. I have been SO blessed by these experiences.

However, now that I live in North Florida, racism has become a bit more apparent to me. How should this be handled? Do I keep my mouth shut and know that everyone has their own opinion and it is not my job to persuade them otherwise? Do I open my mouth & let the words that I have not completely thought through come streaming out and possibly burn bridges with acquaintances/friends?

I am still struggling with understanding what my reaction should be but all I know is that racism hurts my heart. Adoption has filled my thoughts and I can’t help but picture the hurtful, ignorant statements that are spewed about African Americans, Asians, and Hispanics, to not be about “them”, but instead – about our future child(ren). That image of our future child being treated as though they are not as important as another person is devastating. However, this is reality and one that I know our future child/children will face time and time again. Our future biological children (if this is God’s plan) will be faced with racist comments for having brothers and sisters who do not look at them and then our adopted children will be consistently judged and stared at because they look so different from their parents.

Am I really prepared for this? Are Brent & I ready to come face to face with such hurtful comments that will threaten to tear apart this family that we love and would give our lives for?

The answer is surprising.

No.

We aren’t ready.

Yet.

I truly believe that God has planted this seed of adoption plans in our hearts at this early stage to give us the time to build us into the future parents that will be able to face such challenges with love, patience, & kindness. I know we are not yet ready to begin the process but I am so thankful for the year(s) we have ahead of us to prepare our hearts and home to have this journey and hopefully impact lives beyond what we can see.