Page 24 - Publishing Inspiration Christmas Card 2013

My wife, Donna, had grown up in Los Angeles, and
had lots of friends from other races and nationalities. I

lived in New York for a time and grew to love people
from almost every religion and region of the world. But
our children had not had any such opportunities. The
culture here in Idaho is not very diverse. Donna was

concerned that our daughter might be surprised at the mix
in the family, and innocently say something she should
not. So she simply told her that one child in the family
was adopted.
“What does ’dopted mean?” Elliana asked.
“Well, when a child is adopted into a family, they

are not born to the mother of that family, but to another
mother,” Donna replied. “But if that child’s mother can’t
take care of them, the other family takes the child into
their home and loves them as their own.”

This was not really a new concept to Elliana, as we
had been foster parents before, so she smiled and said,
“That is so nice.”
Elliana went over there and played most of the day.
There were four girls and one boy in the family. The girls

played dolls with Elliana and did lots of girl things, but
when they all played soccer in the back yard, the little boy
joined them. They had lunch, and cake for dessert, and
all sorts of good things.
When Elliana arrived home, we asked her how it

went. “It was the most fun ever,” she said. “They have
real pretty dolls, and we played soccer in their great, big
yard.”
Then Elliana stopped and looked at her mother.
“Momma, which one in their family was ’dopted?”

20