Tommy and I spent the last 4 days in Las Vegas. A trip we take every year, sometimes more. We love Las Vegas. For us, a guaranteed few days of careless fun. I had no idea this trip would be so profoundly different.
We landed Friday evening, got in our rental car and headed towards Las Vegas Blvd. At the South end of the strip is the famous Las Vegas sign. There is always lots of traffic no matter the time, people wanting their picture by the sign. Friday was different. No one taking pictures rather a somber quiet crowd, walking through a candle lit memorial of crosses displaying the names and pictures of all of the victims. As we continued to drive just a bit further, we saw entire block of crime scene tape blocking off the location of the shooting… a senseless crime.
On Saturday night we drove down to the sign/memorial. As we walked through we paused at each sign to read the notes and learn about the victim. My heart broke as I read messages of love and sadness from children to their mom or dad and parents to their sons and daughters, husbands and wives, friends and loved ones. I felt such sadness as I processed the fact that none of these individuals planned to die that night. Most thought they would hear a good concert and go home or back to their hotel and carry on with life as normal. But one man, driven by hate, took that from them…each and every one of them.
Fast forward to Monday night. I get a text message saying there has been a shooting at Texas Tech University. Turns out a student was being detained for drugs and shot the police officer. This was an isolated incident and only one life was lost BUT again, a senseless crime. Now his wife will navigate life with her two daughters without their daddy. It’s heartbreaking.
I haven’t blogged since this summer. As a family, we walked through an odd season the last few months and I just didn’t feel like it, ya know? Today was different. As I hurried through the piles of work on my desk from being off, music playing on my phone in the background, the song Better Than I Found It came on. My eyes immediately filled with tears. I asked myself, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO LEAVE IT BETTER THAN YOU FOUND IT?”. I knew I couldn’t be silent.
There is so much hate in the world. As the mother of an interracial child, a best friend to a gay man, and close friends with many different races and people of other religions, I see it first hand daily. BUT….I will be a light. I will love and not hate. I will stand up without fear or hesitation to any hate in my world. I will respectfully disagree while holding tight to my morals and values, without hating or hurting those who don’t see it my way. I want to be a part of the change this world so desperately needs.
The issues we face aren’t political. They aren’t religious. They aren’t issues of gun control. They aren’t issues of skin color. They are HEART issues. People are hurting. They are searching for a place to belong. Life is hard. The world can be a mean and lonely place. We must find our way back to loving one another. You don’t have to like and and support everyone in everything BUT we do have to have respect for humanity.
I challenge each of you reading this to be the light. Be the change the world needs. Leave race, religion, and politics at the door and go back to the basics of LOVE. Agree to disagree without violence or hate. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 says, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. IT DOES NOT DISHONOR OTHERS, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.”. LEAVE EARTH BETTER THAN YOU FOUND IT.
If you are struggling down the road of life and need someone to talk to, pray for you or just simply be there, I am here. Don’t go it alone. There are also many resources in Lubbock and online to assist you through your journey if you aren’t comfortable reaching out in your own circle. Life is better with friends. LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!
Straight Talk 