Eleven months after we met for the first time, James and I married, settling down in the San Francisco Bay Area. The hardships of our relationship in the early years had nothing to do with our respective races but everything to do with learning how to accept the differences and otherness of each other, which included our histories and our cultures.
When the question of children arose, privately and publicly, we found ourselves entering into a whole new dialogue: Would we raise our family in a city we loved, even if we couldn’t realistically afford it? Did it make a difference whether or not our children saw people who looked like both Mama and Daddy?
We chose the route that was right for us, a route that eventually included moving to a place we could afford with a diverse multi-cultural community.
Eventually, we had a son, Canon, whom we proudly nicknamed our “little caramel.” Two years later, Theodore, known as our “little cappuccino” joined the family. Our world is entirely consumed by the little ones who fill our hearts, and who have given us a newer, greater appreciation for issues of racial justice in today’s society.
For we want nothing more than for them to grow up to be kind men who realize that all are equal and all are good and all are valued, precisely for their stamp of humanity. Every single human to grace this good earth has been made in the image of God, and God does not make mistakes.
Our multi-colored family. Photo: Sela Photography
Last spring, the four of us were driving down the road, when Canon pointed out the car window.
“Who’s that?” he asked, pointing at a homeless woman perched on the corner.
“That’s a person.”
“Who’s that?” he asked again, pointing at a young man with pink hair.
“That’s a person, too.”
“Why?”
“Well, because persons are humans.”
“Why?”
“Well, because humans matter, buddy. You and me, we matter, even if we look different from each other. And every single person on this earth, they’re humans. They matter just because they’re humans.”
This is the truth we want our children to know and pass on to the world. This is the truth we want them to model and invite others into. This is the truth we want them to live into, for even in our differences, a greater truth is embedded within our humanity because we are God’s own.
Regardless of the color of our skin, we have intrinsic worth in the eyes of God.