I'm going to tell you a science fiction story. Like any good story, its foundations are set in real life: My sons don't look anything like my wife or me. Joshua we know to be of mixed race, part Caucasian and, reportedly, part African-American, although perhaps more South American, Asian, or Pacific. Caleb is decidedly more African-American in appearance.

Ready for my story?

On the third planet circling an unremarkable yellow sun at the edge of a spiral galaxy, a race of humanoids evolved whose people had widely varied physical aspects. Their skin colors ranged from light to dark. Some had rounded eyes, others, slanted. Some had silky hair, others, coarse. Some were tall and some were short.

Over the generations, this race developed remarkable talents for science, art, and reasoning. They created great works of art, stunning technological achievements, and wrote extraordinary documents outlining their wise philosophical views. While there were hostilities, to be sure, the people of this world were generally peaceful, mostly coexisting with their neighbors in harmony.

Over those same generations, they learned to farm foods, manufacture goods, and build structures for the benefit not only for themselves, but also for each other. Fantasy may have called this world a paradise; the people of this world merely saw the wisdom in cooperation, rather than conflict.

In many of this world's societies, children were cared for by extended families, sometimes even by non-family members of the community. Education was paramount and all the nations strove to make sure no child was denied the education needed to succeed in life. Teachers were highly prized and paid for their time and given the tools they needed to ensure their students' success. Universities accepted—within reason, of course—anyone who cared to extend their education further.

The global economy had been strong throughout the generations because businesses could choose from a diverse, nearly endless pool of well-educated candidates. There was no need to single out certain groups of people to hire because everyone was equal in everyone else's eyes.

Was there crime? Yes, but rare. Was there debate? Certainly, but always healthy, robust, and for the betterment of the people. Things were not perfect. There was disease, though rarely of epic proportions. There were disasters, but everyone worked hard to overcome them. No matter how hard each nation tried, there was poverty, discontent, and greed.

Still, life for most of the world's citizens was enjoyably productive, if not idyllic.

An observer from another world might ask, "How were these fragile, emotional people able to do so much without falling prey to self-annihilation?"

The answer was, remarkably, one of genetic evolution. All the humanoids of this planet had a nearly 50 percent chance of giving birth to children whose skin color and physical features were different from either parent. Light-skinned parents could give birth to either a light- or dark-skinned child. The same was true for dark-skinned parents. Those same sets of parents could give birth to children with ruddy skin pigmentation and slanted eyes. Or they could just as easily give birth to children that looked exactly like themselves.

In one home, a light-skinned couple celebrated the first and second birthdays of their sons, one of whom looked somewhat light tan in color, the other decidedly dark. They loved both equally because they were equal. They could just as easily have been light-skinned and blue-eyed, like their parents. It made no difference.

That was this world's secret: all the humanoids shared the same base DNA, which randomly afforded the child's characteristics. Because of that, the people learned little discrimination, because there was nothing to discriminate against. Nations were built around common values, religions, and goals, not race.

And with that genetic secret, they reached for their moon, the stars, and beyond.

And made them theirs.

How would you treat someone who looks different from you, if you knew they could easily be your son or daughter, sister or brother?

If your answer is that you would treat them with love and respect, then why does it make a difference in the world we do live in?