You’re Too Small

“You’re too small!” As the youngest of three, I hated hearing that! My sister and brother are much, MUCH older than I am,* and growing up, I always felt left out of their activities. I know that when they said, “You’re too small,” what they really meant was, “You’re too young for this particular activity. You’re neither developmentally nor physically mature enough to participate.” But what I really heard, “Right now, you don’t matter.” (I was, and continue to be, pretty dramatic).

So when I heard, “You’re too small, Alesska!” I immediately reacted. At that time, I was at a family retreat center in upstate New York with my mom. We had brought along several of my younger cousins for the week. I saw a familiar scene taking place: Alesska, the youngest of the group, was being excluded from activities. As I watched Alesska pout, I brainstormed for ideas that would make her feel better.

And so the Color Club was born!

Color Club

What is the Color Club? Ah, I’m glad you asked! It is a (not so) secret society of only the coolest kids (Alesska and me, of course). We have our own anthem and handshake, but we are perhaps best known for our battle cry: “Color club, POWER!”

For the rest of the summer, my other cousins begged and attempted to bribe Alesska for entry into the Color Club. Alesska stood firm (today, there are still only two members of the Color Club). But something in her demeanor had changed, too. It was as if she had come to realize that she did, in fact, matter. Nothing was more telling of that realization than the look in her eye that said, “No one’s ever going to tell me that I’m too small.”

Will it Ever Get Better?

Today, Alesska is a sophomore in college. She has a passion for civil rights and social justice, and I’m lucky enough to live within driving distance of her. She came to visit me last weekend, and together we went to the Center for Civil and Human Rights. As I walked the exhibits, I began to cry. I was moved by the life’s work of such civil rights champions as Martin Luther King, Jr., Dorothy Height, and Robert Kennedy. At the same time, I felt incredibly overwhelmed by the injustice that still exists in our world.

“Will it ever get better?” I thought.

My answer came when I looked over at Alesska. As she took in the realities of an unjust world, I saw a familiar look in her eye. A look that recognized that she was an agent for change; a look that said: “No one’s ever going to tell me that I’m too small.”

“But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24, ESV).

*I’m going to get in trouble for that.

If you liked this, you might also enjoy Your Story | The Purpose of the Family

Jael Amador writes from New York, New York.

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