I have many wonderful memories growing up with minorities. Here is one of them.
I was thinking of this because of all the talk in the news about immigrants. I was grateful that I had the experiences that I did, and wished that others could have as well.
One day as a kid my family member visited a fellow church members house. I came along and while the adults talked, I was asked to go with their child so they could have privacy.
I was only too happy to go with the other child. Their child was a slightly older person than me, and it was a spanish (from Spain) teenager woman and I was a few years younger.
We had seen each other at church, but we weren’t really friends because we didn’t hang out in the same circles due to age and we didn’t live close to each other. For all purposes, we were strangers and she took me to her bedroom since that was more private.
Now this is innocent, and I was young and innocent and we were talking about all of the amazing things that I saw in her room. There was a big elephant in the corner hanging up and I asked her about that. She explained it was a pinata. I had no idea what that was at the time and was fascinated at it and how pretty it was.
She took it down and talked about it and we talked about other things in her culture and that was displayed in her room. When it was time to go she gave me a hug and thanked me for asking, and asked if I wanted the pinata. I said yes of course and she gave it to me. I was so touched that this person who barely knew me gave me something that she thought was pretty and valuable.
I kept the pinata for a long time and explained what it was to the people who visited my room like my cousins and family reunions. It make me feel so good that she had been so kind and friendly and I wish that I could have been friends with her more.
It wasn’t to be and that was ok. For me, kindness is always remembered and that why I am kind to others. It has meant all of the difference in my life.