"I have placed my rainbow in the clouds as a sign of my promise until the end of time, to you and all the earth."

-- Genesis 9:13 (TLB)

Recently, my son and I put up our Christmas tree. It was an exciting event and we really went out of the way to make it "the best tree ever." One thing we have grown accustomed to is putting candy canes on our tree. Once that was done, I gave him some money and took him to a store to buy gifts for others. He stopped and told me that he saw one more thing for our tree. I told him that we had enough on the tree but this didn't stop him. With his "Papa, come look," statement, I followed him to another area of the store. There he proudly picked up a box of "rainbow" candy canes and told me, in no uncertain terms, that we "need" them for our tree. As I looked in his eyes and saw his excitement, I told him that I thought that was a very good idea.

When we got home I told my son to go ahead and put them where he wanted them. All twelve were put in the front. I then suggested that he may want to spread them out a bit. "NO," came his firm answer. "Rainbows mean that we all belong to God and that He made us all different. Why would we want to hide that?"

My son is a veteran of Gay Pride parades. He has an aunt who is a lesbian and has a life partner. His mother is a lesbian. I have had to spend a great deal of time speaking to my son about diversity. He has been taught that not one thing is created exactly the same. People aren't the same. The plants aren't the same. No animal is the same. No snowflake is the same. Not even rainbows are the same! Although things may appear the same, in many respects, we are very different from one another and we should celebrate those differences. He understands this, as best as can be expected for a six-year-old. I have explained to him my belief that God doesn't want us all to be alike and so God created a diversified world, full of adventure, wonder and differences. He further understands that if we are all the same, then God wouldn't have a unique plan in mind for each of us to do. I'm glad that my son has a certain understanding of this.

Being a gay parent is not an easy task. It takes an incredible amount of energy to help your child understand what society doesn't want to understand. It takes patience to help your child live the adventure that he/she was created to live and to walk the journey that is held only for them to walk and no one else. It is of utmost importance that children understand these things because their journey can be disrupted by valleys and they may lose sight of the rainbows.

So, we have a tree with rainbow candy canes on it. My son knows it is enough, for this year. He has a better understanding of our life and relationship than he did last year. He will probably even be better equipped next year for these things. But right now, the rainbow candy canes will do.

When I asked what he thought we should do next year for the tree, he proudly said that he felt we could make a better tree. I asked him how we could ever do that. His response? "Papa, I really believe that we should have a WHOLE rainbow tree next year!"

I really think that God was pleased.

Prayer: Creator of us all. Help us understand the simplicity of rainbows. Assist us in accepting others who appear different, as you would accept them and keep us alert to look inwards, for the rainbow children that we are, as a constant reminder of our colorful world. AMEN