It Takes a Village

I must say that I am quite pleased with the village that surrounds my daughter. Thankfully, it's a collection of family members and people we have befriended over the years. I'm also thankful that these folks represent so many different constituencies and a broad spectrum of diversity. It is certainly not token representation either. Obviously, we value difference, and we want our daughter to as well. In addition, there is a wonderful support system in place full of friends and family. Whatever our daughter discovers about herself, she should have someone other than family to confide in.
It's interesting that despite this appreciation of difference, that I am thinking more and more about difference of opinion. Do we want our daughter to be exposed to someone who doesn't share some of our core values? Should we even have those people in our village? These are tough questions. At this point, I think it is most important for our "villagers" to have respect for all types of people. Tolerance is essential. One cannot use ignorance or privilege as a crutch or excuse for mean-spirited, thoughtless comments and actions. To be continued.