Diversity Matters

The other day I was at my deaf son's gymnastics class - it was his first ever class and he was stoked to be there... He was surrounded by other kids his age who naturally were fascinated by him.

They stared at his cochlear implants and watched as he communicated in his unique way. I was there interpreting for him so there was a lot of signing going in.

But then something happened that hit my Mama heart.

All the kids were asked to sit in a circle to create a big "bubble". They had to hold hands with each other, so our little guy edged towards the circle and put out his hand for the little girl to hold it next to him. And then I saw it.

The little girl hesitated. She stepped back from him, and she refused to take his hand.

I can't quite explain the feeling in my stomach when that happened. I was so sad for him and watched the confusion come over his face as he tried to reach out his hand again.

At first I didn't realise why it happened, but then on reflection I realised something...

That little girl was, in a way, a symbol for how a lot of society treats diversity and difference.

Even in this day and age, there is still such a fear around what we don't know and what we're not familiar with...

...that we can sometimes find it easier to avoid it altogether.

Now, this little girl was not in the wrong. She was a 4 year old trying to navigate a new situation, and she'd obviously never seen a deaf child before. And that scared her.

But the hard truth is, I've seen grown adults do the same thing when seeing my son in public.

This wasn't the first time I'd seen the reaction, and it definitely won't be the last time.

Thankfully, a second after that, the girl on his other side who was a little eccentric with long brown hair and a million pieces of jewellery all over her body ran up to him, grabbed his hand with confidence, and gave him the biggest smile I've ever seen.

Cue: me trying to hold back tears while also pretending I was totally fine!

And I guess the lesson here is: as parents and grandparents and as anyone who has an influence on children. We need to be teaching our kids that difference isn't wrong, it's not something to fear, its not something we should shy away from or pretend isn't there...

(and it's also not something we need to glorify or label "inspirational")

People's differences and unique lived experiences should be acknowledged, validated, embraced and included in the conversation.

And the more we provide our kids with the opportunity to connect and become familiar with those differences. The better off our society will be.