Puerto Rico - Babymoon

I always knew for most of my adult life that when I have kids, I wanted them to grow up embracing their culture. I also knew it was going to be difficult, because it starts with us, the parents. My husband is Puerto Rican and I am Cambodian. Germ is fluent in Spanish, but you would never know being around him. He hates speaking the language in public. Me on the other hand, well, that’s a whole another blog. In a nutshell, all I wanted was to acclimate to the “American” culture. But things started to shift when I went to Cambodia for the first time. My parent’s story of survival and grace came to life for me. I left with a sense of ownership and pride that I didn’t have before. And it grew, every time I visited. So I guess in a way, I was excited for Germ to experience that as well. And yeah, for his first time we visited the typical tourist spots. But hey, it’s a start.

I think more than anything, we want our children to be secure in who they are. Being half Puerto Rican and Cambodian is just a part of their uniqueness and beauty, that God created them to be. And it’s not something to be ashamed of or hidden, but embraced. Our parent’s stories and where they came from shaped us, in a good way. It would be a disservice to not pass that along.

I am excited to see how our kids will receive all of this. To come from a rich history like our parents, and to learn from their very own. We hope they will find themselves in the process, as they live out their own experiences in relationship with Christ. And what a cool thing to be a part of that journey.

-mal