Luke, Steph, and Grampa have just finished watching the inauguration.
Luke: I wish I had brown skin.
Steph: Do you? You know, your skin is a very nice colour the way it is.
Luke [smiling bashfully]: Yeah. But I still wish I had brown skin.
That exchange made me feel happy -- I know it's not that unusual for a little kid to wish he was a different colour or that his hair was red and curly or even, say, that he had wings. Although I can remember freaking out a little bit back when I was teaching ESL to immigrant kids in Vancouver and one little Chinese girl -- she must have been in grade five or six -- drew herself as a blue-eyed blonde as part of an autobiography project. At the time I worried she felt she looked "wrong" somehow or that she was rejecting her ethnicity. But when Luke made this passing comment on Tuesday it felt like it meant something, something good. And all I could do was marvel at how it feels like the world really is different now, especially for kids Luke's age. I also realized that, aside from the hosts and characters on children's television shows, the only two famous people Luke recognizes on sight are Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey. Let's hope it's true -- that the world truly is becoming a brand-new place in which your skin colour means nothing more than the pretty shade you happen to come in.
Brava, well written and well said.... You know, now that I think about it... I might like to be a subtle shade of purple! Wouldn't that be wonderful!?!
Posted by: Vintage Kids' Books My Kid Loves | January 25, 2009 at 11:09 PM
I myself would like to be a light shade of spring green, the green with a hint of yellow. Well written steph, I'm going to pass this one along.
Posted by: nela | January 29, 2009 at 12:01 PM
How wonderful! It does make one feel we are making progress, doesn't it?
Posted by: kate | January 30, 2009 at 03:48 PM