Let This Be The Generation

There are about a million things that are so fantastically wonderful about babies, but one of my favorites is the way they see the world. They aren't born knowing hate or war or stereotypes. They are a blank canvas for acceptance and love.

The other day, Preston and I were reading one of his favorite books. He has about 50 books, but of course the free one called "I Love My Family" that he got from the pediatrician is his favorite. Riddle me that. Anyway, we were reading it for the fourth time that day, and all of a sudden he pointed to the man on the cover and said "dada!".

He proceeded to say it 3 more times while pointing right at the man, "dada! dada! dada!". The man on the cover is black. Preston's dad is obviously white, but he didn't see a difference. To him, that man looked like daddy. And that's when it hit me. Racism isn't innate. Babies aren't born seeing a difference in skin color. Those differences are taught, which means with this new generation, we have the power to emphasize that they're right. That there isn't, in fact, a difference at all.

We've all heard the term "experiencing the world through a child's eyes", and that's been one of the coolest parts of motherhood. I have fallen in love with the simple things and learned how to stop and smell the roses again thanks to my wobbling toddler. And thanks to little moments like my child exclaiming "dada" at this book, I have also been reminded how easy it should be to love and accept others. Babies aren't born seeing the differences. Let this be the generation that never sees a difference.