I was out to dinner with a few of my colleagues this past week. During the course of the conversation, one person asked how will she tell her baby girl that her older sister has a different father.

That question caught my attention. I grew up in a blended family. My parents broke up when I was one year old. My mom remarried and my brother came along when I was four years old.

Most people didn’t know Jason and I had different fathers. You would never know just by looking at us. As we became older and more involved in activities, people would notice that I wasn’t around during the summer. I remember someone asking Jason why he doesn’t leave for summer. His reply was short and sweet. He simply said she is with her dad.

As I was listening to conversation at dinner, I began to wonder if my brother felt any type of way about us having different fathers. So I decided to ask him.

The question was posed this way. Did you feel different growing up with a sibling having a different dad?

My brother always with the short and sweet response stated,”No because the reason why I said no is your family treated me like I was one of their own.”

That response sparked a moment of gratitude. I am so thankful my parents made the conscious decision to co-parent well. I am grateful my brother, to this day, feels the love from my father’s family. I am thankful that our families didn’t chose drama.

My family has never been traditional but we made our differences work where everyone involved felt loved and not feel like an outsider.

Happy Saturday!

Neikeita