Dark Like Me

2~Family Too

Coming to a sudden halt, jolting me out of my memory bank. I look at my father handing a post officer his military ID along with mine. The post officer nods and hands my father and my ID back, and waves them through, on base.

Home is on base, not in the apartments where the privates or single soldiers live. We live in the back of the military base to ensure we are well-protected. Our neighborhood comes complete with a pool area, recreational center, and a library. It is a few miles from the P-Extra; P-Extra is a military commissary, a store almost like Wal-Mart except if you are military you do not have to pay taxes at this store.

Stopping again in the driveway of a two-story house with my mom's car in the driveway. I sigh relieved to be home, even though we have five bedrooms, we are still constantly bumping into each other. A big house and a small family would seem like it would be enough room for everyone.

I quickly get out and briskly walk to the front door with my food bag and cup. My father follows behind and unlocks the door with his key. I enter the house and immediately go upstairs into my room I share with my older sister. Two boys' rooms are downstairs near the kitchen area since they are always eating late at night. My parent's bedroom is upstairs as well; we have a few extra bedrooms.

I am not sure as to why I am sharing a room with my sister, but if it makes her happy, then I am happy as well. My thoughts are because we have always shared a room to have each other to talk to, but there should be an age limit to this.

I sit on my bed and take the salad out the bag; the taunts from the strangers are still going through my mind.

I do not get how people could be so mean, just because of my skin tone or the real reason: the Winters' family adopted me. I was five years old when they adopted me. Mrs. Winters had decided to adopt me because Sydnie wanted a sister and Mrs. Winters wanted another child. Even though they had two more children at home, they never treated me poorly; I was and still am an equal to the ones they gave birth to. Though being treated as an equal at home had me unprepared for the real world.

She remembers a few things from her childhood. These few things aren't exactly heartwarming. They break her heart every time she remembers. It changed, of course, for the better. A different step in the right direction, Sirrah liked to remind herself.

She was five when she was adopted by a white family, the last of the orphans were at the house. It was a happy moment in her dull life. There was a young girl with her parents when the Winters came to adopt Sirrah.

However, it was a sad thought. It was a matter of time before she would forget again. The normal, happy lifestyle. The judging looks the family would get when Sirrah joined the Winters'. A start of a revolution to something bigger.

There are many respectable people around the world who have the exact same skin tone as I do, but they get more respect than I do. I ponder what I have to do in order to get people to stop teasing me and see me as another human being, an equal.

Sighing, I try to shake this feeling so I can eat the wonderful looking salad. However, I look at the salad, sadly, my appetite now gone. I push the salad to the side and just sip the tea, and turn the television on.

Watching Maury, my mind turn back to the stupid people at the McDonald's. The rims of my eyes burn with tears. After being teased about my skin tone my whole life and crying about it, this was my time to toughen up.

I look around the room, my dark grey toned hues stop on the pictures of my sister and my sister's steady boyfriend of eleven months, on my sister's nightstand. He is a high yellow young man, a little older than my sister is, but they make it work. I envy my sister's relationship with her boyfriend.