Today is another one of those days when I struggle to find the right words. Any words, really.
After all, no words, no thoughts, no prayers, no magic wands can take away the grief, the anger, the fear, and the hopelessness that so many of us feel, once again, after another mass shooting.
Nothing can bring those babies back. Nothing can ease the pain those parents feel.
But as hopeless as it all seems, we can not let despair immobilize us. For the sake of all the families affected by gun violence, we must not give up. We need to gather our grief and our anger and our fear and turn it into a power driven by love.
Power is what it’s all about, after all. But, it’s power driven by greed and hatred, or at the very least a disregard for and irreverence towards life, that keeps this country from moving towards solutions that can save lives.
Basketball coach Steve Kerr has drawn our attention to the 50 senators- and their love of their own power- who refuse to pass H.R. 8 (which would require a background check before all gun sales) despite the fact that polls show that over 90% of Americans favor such a bill.
(Steve Kerr: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5x4eHn_3tA)
This columnist advocates for Red Flag Laws: (https://frenchpress.thedispatch.com/p/pass-and-enforce-red-flag-laws-now?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20220525&instance_id=62320&nl=the-morning®i_id=95597434&s=r&segment_id=93286&te=1&user_id=f9dc9f7a9c3d16a1ebd8bf8c594d9d65)
After the Parkland shooting, Florida, signed by then Gov. Rick Scott, did pass a Red Flag Law. The important thing about this law is that people know about it so that it can indeed be effective! And so, I am letting you know that it exists here in this state. Here’s more about that:
Let us continue to gather the power of Love that allows us to be together, to support one another during these times of tragedy when it seems as if the soul of our country is sick and broken. Let us gather Strength together to keep moving forward and bring the hope we so desperately need into fruition so that life is approached with care and reverence. Let us gather the Knowledge we need to know that this is a complex problem, with multiple variables at play, and not one, single solution will make it all go away. Let us be a model for how we want the world to be– a model of a Curious community that listens to one another and works together to reach better solutions for all.
Blessed Be.