Diversity

Diversity: 
1. The condition of having or being composed of differing elements: variety; especially: the inclusion of different types of people (as people of different races or cultures) in a group or organization
2. An instance of being composed of differing elements or qualities: an instance of being diverse
(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diversity) 

  My family is full of diversity, not only physical diversity but also diverse types of personalities.  The older I get, the more I realize that some of the most random and quirky things about people are also the things that I love the most about them.  

Having diverse cultures and personalities makes life a little more interesting and a little more fun to live.

Kim's family, September 2013

Physical diversity

My family is physically diverse in a couple of ways.  Both of my sisters have married interracially, bringing in 10 beautiful nieces and nephews of both Hispanic and Hawaiian decent.  These children have beautiful features both physically and spiritually.  Their fathers have also shared with us some of their culture, including, spicy foods and polynesian performances.  

I also have a brother that has adopted two children.  Him and his wife waited patiently for years to conceive.  Finally, after much prayer, they decided to try adopting.  Their two babies are a perfect fit for them and have definitely evolved the diversity of our family to a new level (did I mention that one of their babies is African American with the best curly hair?).

Being a part of a family with this type of diversity gets me even more excited about the potential to have a diverse family of my own.  Adoption is not the "norm", and I know that it has its challenges, but seeing the blessing it has become in my brother's life has brought me much hope.

My smart husband, after graduating law school! 

Diverse Personalities

This is where we get into weird, quirky persoanlity traits that I love about people. Here are a few examples of people that I am closest to:

Austin: He has a thing for certain types of pens, the “Pilot G-2” series to be exact; it must be the engineer in him.  At first it drove me crazy because he was very protective of these pens, but the longer we've been married, I’ve grown to love this about him.  He also really enjoys making spreadsheets in his free time.  He finds satisfaction in computing complicated data to help us make wise financial decisions.  These traits showcase his analytical reasoning that helps balance our relationship and keeps me grounded.

Mom: My mom has sung in a community choir for years.  She is full of random songs and doesn’t have any problem belting them out whenever she is feeling the urge.  A fresh example on my mind is when making pasta for dinner, she will literally sing a pasta song: “pasta, pasta, so delicious, we just love it, and we eat it a lot! Pasta, pasta, so nutritious we’ll eat any kind you got! ...Etc…” She is also full of other random quirky things that would take a few pages to describe!

Dad: One word: Pinochle.  Pinochle is a card game that is taken very seriously in my family and to be partnered with my dad means, you better be on your “A” game.  He is success driven in all avenues of life and this translates over to Pinochle.  When I was learning to play, I was often nervous to be his partner for fear I wouldn’t perform to his standard.  Looking back I can now see how he taught me many things during those games and his success driven personality has definitely rubbed off on me.  

Mom, Kim and Dad 2006

Being part of a diverse family has always seemed natural to me.  Every child is loved and cherished as equals and for different reasons.  Also, being able to find the unique characteristics in others and still love them for those qualities is something I strive to do.  I love this unique world we live in and do my best to see the good in those around me.