As the election returns came in last evening, my heart was very heavy. But instead of dwelling on that, I thought I would share a short conversation with Yoseph last week.
Those who know me won’t be surprised to hear that we talk a lot about politics and government in our house. We were talking about Indianapolis is a city, part of a larger thing called a state. And we were asking Ana who is in charge of the city (“the mayor!” And what’s his name? “….um….Joe Hogsett!”) and who is in charge of the state (“the governor!” And what’s his name? “…um….Penny?”) and who is in charge of the country (“OBAMA!!!”).
Yoseph sat watching this dialogue unfold, looking grateful he wasn’t expected to know the answers to these questions. When Ana finished, he asked a really simple question, with no agenda:
“How come they’re all guys? Why aren’t any of them women?”
Oh, Yo. You’re speaking right to my heart.
I present this conversation the same way he did, with no agenda; I’m not (necessarily) advocating for the female candidates in this year’s general election. But I love, LOVE that he recognized this disparity. I think this is what true equality, whether gender or racial, requires…that we notice inequities when presented with them. Well, true equality requires a lot of things. But still. He got me thinking.
God bless Yoseph’s emotional intelligence and tender heart to notice all of this on his own.
