Maureen Forster
Philadelphia, PA
I was maybe 6 yrs old when My Dad, Stepmother, older sister and older brother were in Baltimore on a little family trip. We stayed at a Holiday Inn or something along those lines and were out in the pool. I grew up in a small city with much diversity but I guess “kids say the funniest things”, right? My family is all white, but at least 10 people were in that pool all of dark skin. I just remember to this day (I’m 29 now) looking around and thinking “but why are we the only white people?” and it slipped out….in front of everyone in and around that pool. I recall my family laughing and people looking at us…my dad kind of shrugged it off and said that I shouldn’t say that too loud.
I guess as a kid it was just a general observation and I was curious why we were the only white ones there. Nothing negative. Maybe just never was in that position before at only 6 yrs old? Either way, it stuck with me. It made me realize that people are just people. I sometimes would imagine how a black family would feel in a pool of all white people. It made my heart bigger.
