The Loudest Voice

I know I don't need to rehash what happened December 14th, 2012 in Newtown, Conn. That moment, like all other tragedies (Columbine, Virgina, Tech, 9/11, Oklahoma City), are burned into our collective consciousness. They are moments that change our perspective, shattering preconceived notions of what is and isn't possible. We see the darkness that lurks in humanity as it rears its head and snuffs out the light of innocence.

That day, the world mourned. My twitter feed changed from "Check out this book" or some other miscellaneous blurb about life, to shock, pain, fear, anger, and tears. Parents wanting to pick up their children and hold them tight knowing that so many children were lost that day. Losing a child is the greatest fear that any parent, myself included, can experience. That fear is amplified when we are confronted with a tragedy of this magnitude. The senseless loss of innocence.

As with all tragedies the fear turns to politics. How are we going to protect ourselves and our children from horrible people? What new laws must be enacted? Politicians have already started wrangling their viewpoints to a nation in mourning. It was all over FB and Twitter too.

I assure, this post isn't about politics. It isn't about rights. It isn't about pointing fingers.

It's about the victims.

It doesn't, ultimately, matter how, or why, it just happened. A horrific tragedy. That day hatred roared into our lives with the voice of a 100 gunshots.

A tweet passed through my timeline from a friend. I can't remember the exact words used, but it was along the lines of that there was so much hatred in the world that she didn't even want to be a part of the human race anymore.

My immediate response was to give her a virtual hug (I was giving out a lot of those in lieu of real ones). Then I told her "There is more love in the world than hate. Hate just has a louder voice."

Let me say that again...

THERE IS MORE LOVE IN THE WORLD THAN HATE. HATE JUST HAS A LOUDER VOICE.

I tried to get this out to people. Asking for people to retweet the message that we need to make love's voice louder. It won't end hatred, but it can make love's voice louder, so that when hatred roars, love sings above it.

So, here is what I'm asking you, my dutiful readers. Send a message of hope, love, or kindness. Use the hashtag #LovesVoice be it on Twitter, Email, or Facebook. Sometimes the simplest things can change a person's life. Send the message to someone who needs it. Send it because you can. Send messages of love or thankfulness, it doesn't matter. Just say it. Anything positive to brighten someone's day. Let's see if we can get this going somewhere.

And maybe, just maybe, Love's Voice will be louder.

And here's a start. 26 Moments That will Restore Your Faith in Humanity.

'Till next time.

UPDATE: My friend Jaime Dement over at WriteBackwards did a wonderful post about giving to those in need. You should head over and check it out.

UPDATE: Saw this beautiful video by Shane Kyczan talking about being bullied. Has an amazing message.