Funny and not-so-funny all at the same time
For those of you who have been following along with this blog (or better yet, those of you who know me personally), you know that we are in the process of adopting two girls. We can't post pictures of them publicly but I will describe them a bit here to set the stage. They are half sisters who are two years apart in age. One sister has beautiful caramel-colored skin. She is a biracial beauty with soft corkscrew curls, gorgeous full lips and a complexion to die for. The other has smooth, porcelain skin with freckles across the bridge of her nose and the tops of her cheeks. Her hair is a fabulous red -- the color of red that requires an orange crayon to color when we are drawing self portraits. Both girls are beautiful, but they definitely don't look like they are biological sisters.
The funny thing is that the redhead looks like me. I mean she looks a LOT like me. I have the same porcelain skin and hair that is red enough to pass as a redhead [we call it auburn around here]. Her similarities to me are close enough that most everyone assumes she is my biological child and don't entirely believe me when I tell them she is adopted. Once people are convinced, I usually hear comments like "Isn't that funny how God works?" and "It's just crazy how much she looks like you! I mean she REALLY looks like you."
It is funny and yet it isn't. It definitely isn't funny when strangers go on and on about how much the little one looks like me or refer to her as my "mini me".....in front of my other daughter. It isn't funny at all to see the disappointed look cross her face when folks go overboard pointing out how obvious it is that her sister belongs in our family and then say nothing like that to her. She already knows she's the only one in our family who gets ashy skin or needs to put olive oil in her hair. She doesn't need any "help" feeling like her differences are a bad thing.
I guess I'm writing this post for two reasons: (1) to vent my frustration a little, and (2) to educate the world at large that while we appreciate your enthusiastic adoption comments -- please do not to forget we have two wonderful daughters whom God chose for us.
The funny thing is that the redhead looks like me. I mean she looks a LOT like me. I have the same porcelain skin and hair that is red enough to pass as a redhead [we call it auburn around here]. Her similarities to me are close enough that most everyone assumes she is my biological child and don't entirely believe me when I tell them she is adopted. Once people are convinced, I usually hear comments like "Isn't that funny how God works?" and "It's just crazy how much she looks like you! I mean she REALLY looks like you."
It is funny and yet it isn't. It definitely isn't funny when strangers go on and on about how much the little one looks like me or refer to her as my "mini me".....in front of my other daughter. It isn't funny at all to see the disappointed look cross her face when folks go overboard pointing out how obvious it is that her sister belongs in our family and then say nothing like that to her. She already knows she's the only one in our family who gets ashy skin or needs to put olive oil in her hair. She doesn't need any "help" feeling like her differences are a bad thing.
I guess I'm writing this post for two reasons: (1) to vent my frustration a little, and (2) to educate the world at large that while we appreciate your enthusiastic adoption comments -- please do not to forget we have two wonderful daughters whom God chose for us.
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