262 + 164 + 31 weeks
Yes, it’s Friday. My calendar is not entirely my own anymore (read: sponsored posts happen when clients say they happen). But I’ve decided not to let Mila Monday go away entirely; I love it too much. And even when it’s late or I don’t share pics of all my kids, I’ll still share a few thoughts about each of them. It’s an easy way to remember what they were like at different stages of their lives.
Today, though, this is not entirely about them. Brace yourselves, kids, because Jen’s found herself a soapbox.
I’ll be honest, I kind of hated having a sponsored post on Monday. The post was fine but the timing felt so very wrong after the events of the weekend.
Events. Like it was a concert or carnival or something. Ugh.
My heart has been so heavy. I keep crying when it makes no sense to cry. I am so so tired of this, guys. I think we all are. I cannot even imagine how people of color, LGBTQ people, Muslim people, any people who keep finding themselves targets of horrific words and actions must be feeling right now.
To them, all I can say is I am sorry. I see you. I love you. I am willing to help if you’ll tell me what I can do. And I’m so so sorry.
I wish I knew how to implement the solution to all the violence. We can talk about thoughts and prayers and gun reform and tighter surveillance and better mental health support and all the policy changes we want, and talking about these things is good. Hopefully all the talk will finally lead to much-needed change. But none of that gets to the real heart of the matter.
Which is this: we do not know how to love each other.
We are all so busy, or so selfish, or so angry, or so bitter, or so apathetic, or so whatever that we don’t love one another the way we were meant to do. Most of us haven’t really internalized the idea that EVERY human life has value, and EVERY human is allowed to choose, and EVERY human deserves respect and dignity and love. Not unless. Not only if. Not except when. Every. Single. One. Always and unconditionally.
Some people know it. Some people even know and live it. But “some people” is not enough. Too many of us have forgotten it, or worse, never learned it in the first place.
And until we all get it through our thick skulls and hard hearts, people will keep hurting other people. We will keep hurting each other. Abusing. Neglecting. Bullying. Raping. Murdering.
There’s not much I can do to teach most of the seven billion lives on this planet how to love each other, but these three? They’re gonna hear it every day as long as I have breath in my body to tell them.
Love people. Love them. Then love them some more. I don’t care what he looks like or what she said or how they behaved or who has what or why. People are more important than all that. So love each other.
That’s all. Just love.
It’s a great soap box to be on. I don’t understand why we can’t all just love each other, empathize with each other, and support each other. Everyone is human, makes mistakes, has feelings, has dreams… there is no need for meanness. Be kind!
Yep. Exactly that. People are people, so just be kind.