This weekend we took my dear husband to his brother’s house to catch ducks about an hour away from home. While we were there, Monkey and I needed to find something to occupy ourselves so we decided the best use of our time would be to go shopping. We found a store I used to frequent when I was a child in Mississippi growing up, Roses.
I loved Roses as a child; it seemed like a huge department store where we could afford everything! This Roses had tiny cramped isles, wasn’t much larger than a big Dollar Store and I realized it was probably about the same as the Roses of my youth J
Monkey, however, thought it was a marvelous store indeed! Worthy of spending at least an hour, perhaps more! Each isle brought new wonders and then we reached the toy isles. She oohed and aahed over all the toys. None were no-no’s because of price. Everything was within her reach! It was almost too much for her to comprehend! We spent half of our time at Roses in the 5 isles of toys deciding upon which toy would be the perfect one. And then she saw it…well, she saw her. A beautiful baby doll. Not just any baby doll, this baby doll was the only baby doll of African American descent. It was decided. She was the newest member of our family.
We moved on to the next section of Roses; house wares. I’m not certain if I’ve told you of Monkey’s affinity for “Floor Petting” but Roses has carpet! We were petting floors when suddenly Monkey spotted a woman whom she must have thought she knew. Immediately she began the incessant waving and shouting, “HI! HI!” This didn’t stop until the woman turned and acknowledged her. A big grin crossed her face as Monkey raced across the small isle with her knock-kneed gait and holding a box containing her newest treasure. “I have a baby!”, and she held it up with pride for the woman to see. This woman, whose features resembled the baby we now call Roses Baby, looked at the baby and got a look of shock on her face as she looked at me. Monkey walked back to the cart oblivious to the differences between her and her new baby. I said, “She doesn’t see color.” Monkey’s new friend said, “She must be such a blessing to you.”
Wow! She said a mouthful there, didn’t she? My little girl is certainly that. She is more than just a blessing to me though. She is a blessing to many. As we wandered the isles of the Roses during the remaining time before our departure we ran into the lady once again. She pressed a dollar bill into Monkey’s hand and insisted she take it, “to help pay for her baby”. Her eyes had tears in them. She was genuinely touched by the innocent love of my daughter.
Monkey is 11 years old and yet she has taught me many things in her short little life. God has used her to show me so much and not just me; He’s used her to teach many people many things. On this day, He used her to teach this lesson.
All of us are created in His image and we should all be colorblind. Not respecters of people.
“My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism.” James 2:1 NIV
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