Lead with Love.

When will we stop living a world that focuses more on ourselves and less on everyone else?  When will we stop allowing the lives of others and their opinions to drive us to hate and violence?  I want to raise my children in a world that doesn’t judge the color of your skin, the place of worship you walk in to, the person you love, the bathroom you use, the car you drive, the clothes you wear, or the passions you pursue.  I want to raise my children in a world that embraces love and inclusion, a world that looks on the inside first.

This is not a political debate.  This is not about guns or gun control.  This is not about who should use what bathroom.  This is about simple human principles.  Principles that this country was founded on.  The idea that we can have an opinion, follow any religion we choose, and be who we want are the guiding principles that led the settlers here in the first place.

Why do we allow what others say or do or how they live their lives effect us so much?  If someone decides they love someone of the same sex how does that change your life?  If someone decides they have been trapped in the wrong body their whole life and decide to change that to actually feel comfortable in their own skin how does that influence your life?  If someone decides to worship Allah, or Buddha, Jesus, or Zeus, does that have any hindrance on your choice of worship?  If someone decides to color their hair purple and cover them self in tattoos does that have any impact on your life what so ever?

The beauty of our country, of our freedom, is that you do not need to agree or like it, but does that give you a right to belittle someone?  To give them dirty looks, throw slander or take to social media and blast them?  How does someone being different than you give you any right to shame them, hurt them, fight with them, or worse?

How someone chooses to live their life and the opinions he or she has has absolutely no effect on your life at all.  Do you have to agree or like it?  No.  Should you move through showing mutual respect and acceptance?  Yes.  Until we can come together in a unified stance as a humanity we will not be able to defeat those who want to bring us down.  If we come together and allow love to prevail then we will be able to squeeze out those who fall out of line, those groups who believe their religion is superior and our ways inferior.  Until we lead with love nothing will change.

I want my children to grow up in and raise their children in a world that focuses on love and inclusion.  The only element of life that will ever win is love.  It doesn’t matter what war we are fighting, who the President is or isn’t, how many religions or ethnicities there are, love will always win.  I am not sure what it will take for our country, our world, to realize this fundamental truth and come together, but I sure hope that no more lives need to be lost to senseless acts of hate and violence before it does.  Lead with love.