King, Jr.

Just after returning to school from Christmas break, Noah told us that they learned about King, Jr. I didn't have a clue what he was talking about. I actually asked if that was a name he had given to one of his knights. He looked at me kind of funny and said, "No, Mom." And as we drove home, it came to me. "Do you mean Martin Luther King?" He beamed. That was the one. I asked what he learned. He said, "Well, there are some people with brown faces and some with white. King, Jr. fought the Civil War and then they could be friends." Well, sort of, right? Benjamin LOVES to listen to all the things Noah learns about at big kid school so he was asking some questions. I tried to interject a couple of corrections, but didn't want to say too much. He's continued to bring home papers and bring him up on occasion - each time with a little more information. I have struggled with this topic because I don't really want to teach my children that there is a difference in people - more than just the color of their skin - and I don't know how to do that when he is still so young. So I am letting him guide the conversation. At bed tonight, I asked him to tell me again about Luther King. He said, "Well, he was a guy that lived one time. He had a dream about people with brown skin. They used to fight a lot with white people. So he talked to the President to change some of the laws and then they didn't fight anymore." So, he is getting closer, I guess...

A funny story about Noah from this summer. We were attending Vacation Bible School at our church. He came out the second day and told me that there was a boy from Africa in his class. I had seen him in the classroom so I knew who he was talking about. "Aww, cute, little innocent Noah," I thought. And I spent our drive home trying to explain that just because people have black skin doesn't mean they are from Africa. The next day I was back in my craft room and heard some other moms talking about - you guessed it - the boy from Africa that was in my son's class. Uh, what? Sure enough! Long story short - there is a girl at our church who runs an orphanage in Africa. At 22, she is legal guardian to over 20 children. Elton was one of them. He had some medical issues that required her bringing him here and in their spare time he was at VBS. (Want to read her whole amazing story - read here.) So, I had to go back to Noah and tell him he was right. I was wrong. Wish I could say that was the only time that had ever happened...