The Beauty of my Community

I am, as a white woman, the minority in my community and I love it.

I am surrounded by so many people from so many different places, and I think it’s simply the most beautiful thing in the world. I feel like I am a part of something special when I walk along the streets of my community. Markets, stores, shops and restaurants display an array of cultural and ethnic diversity.

In my apartment building, we have an African family (not sure which country), an Algerian family, two Mexican families, an Indian family, a Haitian family and a Vietnamese couple. I am the only white person in the building.

My elderly Vietnamese neighbours of almost 5 years speak neither English or French, but we smile at each other, wish each other a good day and gesture our way through our small “conversations”. They give us small gifts on special occasions, and the woman sometimes cooks food for us. When their grandchildren come over, they send us little messages expressing their love and gratitude, and we take the opportunity to do the same.

Multi-racial families like mine are far from being the exception here. 95% of the student body in both schools in which I work are from various countries. In addition, not only does my son have friends from different backgrounds, he also speaks fluent Spanish thanks to his wonderful caregiver!

We are so lucky! What a glorious thing to live amongst each other in harmony.

Clearly, there is not one place in the world where inequality does not exist, and this is not to say that my community is perfect. Social issues exist here just as they do everywhere else. I am grateful, however, that my son is exposed to such diversity as it will allow him to understand (perhaps with a little help from his mama) that despite our differences, we are all the same: human beings.

❤