Barbadian, Puerto Rican, Irish, Norwegian, Jamaican, East Indian, and Native American, all under one roof! We never planned on having such a colorful family… it just happened. Nor did we ever adopt internationally, only domestically. Through private and foster care/adoption, we’ve been blessed to have had many different nationalities and ethnicities under our roof. Keeping a child connected to his/her culture is very important. Your child’s culture has a rich history and they deserve to know it. If you are pursuing a transracial adoption consider the following:
1. Seek out significant persons of the same culture as your child.
Keep the child connected to his culture by keeping him connected to one person in his past, if possible. Perhaps it’s a relative, family friend, or clergy. It has been a blessing to have open adoptions where our children can learn new words, jewelry, and family history. If you are adopting internationally, seek advice from a person of the same culture. They have insights that you could never have dreamed.
2. Learn about the food of your child’s culture.
Most foster children have feeding issues. From hoarding food to overeating, to not eating enough, foster/adopted children can use food as a control issues. Add to that an adopted child from another culture, the prospects can be daunting! A way to cut down on the control issues while learning about exotic foods is to research foods from that culture. Is your child from Mexico? Try making tamales or tacos (but not from Taco Bell, haha!). Is your child Native American? Make fry bread! Better yet, let your child help you. My daughter, who was born in India, loves naan bread and we try to buy it every chance we get. This will keep your child connected to his culture and will reduce battles at the dinner table.