“I hung up, rushed home, threw clothes in a bag, and headed straight for Alabama. It was a two-hour drive away. Through cries and wet tears, I had to push through and continue driving. I just wanted to see my niece. As my son slept in the backseat, I prayed for a miracle.”
‘I was getting food when my sister called, hysterically crying. ‘What’s wrong?’ Then the news came. ‘Mama said she found McKenzie in the bathroom. Get here now!’ I was frozen in shock.’
‘I put it in his hands,’ he said repeatedly, crying and rocking back and forth. I was frozen in shock. The police thought he found my father’s ‘medicine’ in the back of his truck.’
“My heart was beating out of my chest. I didn’t know what to say or do. I silently got up and left. That was the last time I ever saw him.”
‘I applied to more than 300 jobs and didn’t get a single response. I was shocked, heartbroken. I had 10 years of experience in the industry. So, I did an experiment.’
“I created a fake job applicant and called her Bianca White. I kept the same employment history and educational background, but listed her as a white woman on the diversity questionnaire. The next day, I was stunned.”
‘My husband called. I knew something was up. ‘She delivered a baby last night.’ I shook. I cried. He wouldn’t be the only brown face in our family.’
“A week later I received an email. I thought, ‘Leave me alone! I have a brand new baby I wasn’t expecting! Just give me a chance!’ When I clicked on the email, it wasn’t them reminding me to do my update. It was their birth mother.”
‘A little boy saw you and yelled, ‘You’re brown, you’re not supposed to be brown!’ My heart dropped to the floor. You had the most innocent look on your face.’
“The boy’s mom quickly said, ‘He is brown, but he’s beautiful.’ The little boy yelled again, ‘No, he’s not. He’s NOT beautiful, because he’s brown!’ In the moment, I couldn’t even open my mouth.”
‘During our photo shoot, a man screamed, ‘Dirty terrorists! Leave my country!’ He was an older gentleman, and looked absolutely disheveled, pointing at us. We were caught off guard.’
“He pulled out his privates while giving us the middle finger. We were shocked, mortified, and disgusted by what we had seen. But we are professionals at what we do. We continued on with our shoot. The man started approaching closer and closer.”
‘Two blonde girls at the playground told my daughter she couldn’t play with them because she doesn’t have blonde hair. The girls’ parents did not intervene.’
“You better believe I did.”
‘We sound like the beginning of a bad joke. A Black, Transracial, Mennonite Adoptee and a White Mennonite Midwesterner walk into a bar…’
“Eight years ago, I got in a car at midnight to eat bad cheese fries at a sketchy truck stop. I took a chance to be vulnerable with someone I didn’t know. And, it changed my life.”
‘On the night of our honeymoon, I saw the DARKER side of my husband. My heart was beating out of my chest. He crouched down and whispered in my ear, ‘You… are NOT going to tell me what to do.’ I felt instant regret.’
“I went to my bedroom and packed everything as fast as I could. My phone pinged. ‘You’ve got 1 new voicemail!”
‘I noticed an older man staring at us. I was annoyed and wished for once, we could eat a meal like a ‘normal’ family. Suddenly, the man walked towards us. My heart began to race.’
“He shook my husband’s hand, and nodded his head. His eyes filled with tears as he looked at my children and said, ‘I just wanted to tell you that you have such a beautiful family.’ I watched him walk out the door as tears rolled down my cheeks.”
