Thursday, January 21, 2010

WHY?????

Abeba has entered another fun phase of toddlerhood...the WHY??? stage! This stage is one with many opportunities to teach and explain, and can even simply get a bit irritating at times! I give Abeba a task to complete like picking up her toys...but WHY? I tell her to sit down in her chair....but WHY?? "Can I have a piece of gum???" No...but WHY??? Parents you know how it goes!

Last night I found a baby doll for bedtime that just happened to be a black skinned baby doll. It was in the bottom of the toy box so she had not seen it for awhile.  She was excited because the baby was an "Abeba baby" (this is what she calls other children she sees with black skin). We proceeded to bed when she commented on the baby's color. "Why?", she said. "Why is Abeba baby blue (aka black :)? Me blue??" she said and then came the "WHY?"

What a great teaching opportunity for me! A verse came to my mind pretty quickly...."For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.." Psalms 139:13-14.  I told her that God made her that way. Of course this led to more questions. Daddy blue? Eli blue? Israel blue? It was a heart warming conversation. I look forward to the day that I can explain to her how God put her in the womb of her Ethiopian mama so that someday I would have the privilege to be her American mama.   It is neat to know she sees a simple difference for now and is content with it. I am sure that more complicated questions will come someday, but for now I will be thankful for the simplicity of that little word... WHY???

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