I didn’t have cable or t.v. so I didn’t watch the news. I read, planned new blog posts with the hope that I would eventually get to them, made mental notes to apologize for not commenting as often as I would like, on my beloved blogging community’s posts, but mostly, I was unpacking. Lots of boxes, not a lot of space. New home, new energy and much exploring. A new post about our move is on its way.
Then I saw it, last evening, when I turned finally turned on the t.v. Nine killed in a church.
A twenty-one year old sat inside a sacred place, watched and waited. When. I ask. when will it be enough? when will gun laws change? when will we accept that a lack of care for mental health patients needs to be addressed, so those that need help will receive it, not explode at innocent worshipers, school children, shoppers at a mall or at movie theaters. How do we come together as a community and what is our responsibility in protecting humanity from committing atrocities against each other?
I found this quote as I sat searching for answers to what has become an all too common occurrence in our country today.
Meditating Mummy 
Loooooooooooove Maya Angelou.
I also love this quote by Elie Wiesel, “The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.”
Our country is INDIFFERENT…otherwise wouldn’t we be doing something about what is happening: the shootings, The violence, the disrespect, the not-giving-a-shit?
BTW, if you haven’t read NIGHT by Elie Wiesel, you must! xx
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Oh my gosh Kim, isn’t that the truth?
We are absolutely Indifferent and therein lies the reason we can’t get out of this ridiculous mess. The lack of respect – don’t even get me started. Do you see it? I see it everyday. Young people are the most vulnerable and yet the most in need of guidance. However I am now starting to see it with my generation too. Sad.
I will check out that title.
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Brilliant quote. Unfortunately, the ones who need to hear it, the hate mongers, for them it’ll go over their heads. “BlackLivesMatter Other than that, I have no words to express the grief so many of us feel.
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It really was all I could find in my heart, Monica. As I watch more of the news and learn of how much hatred this child had towards African Americans in particular, the blank, vacant look on his face – so remorseless. I have nothing myself.
Too much sadness, it is just senseless.
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so true – we cannot understand what has made this young man to do this- i applaud the families who are full of forgiveness for him and truly practice their religion.Forgiveness is the only way to move on.
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Violence against color and religion – it astounds me every single time. All we can do moving forward is to forgive and teach our future that African American, Asian, White, Hispanic.. We’re all the same.
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I find myself unable to even process this. Because I cannot think it a likely thing, then it happens, I can’t process it. How does something so unlikely and so unTHOUGHT of in my head come to fruition in someone else’s?
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Oh Colleen, it is unfathomable. Truly.
I think of Sandy Hook elementary – I wondered then, how little innocents could suffer so much because of the suffering of some one else’s mind.
And this happens. This blatant hatred. I saw that a Fox News anchor had suggested it is due to living with different communities – in
Other words .. No diversity. The same thought most likely entered this young man’s mind.
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I’m just still unable to process. I don’t want to think about this guy, but I know I must.
What I find myself doing, is gravitating to the “9” and their church.
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You know, this guy is getting more publicity than he deserves. I would like to focus on the 9 myself. Like you, I want to hear more about them. Who they were and what they meant to their community.
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I was sad last night that I had to go so far in to the news to find anything about them. But there seems to be a strong movement to focus on THEM. I couldn’t find anything about that guy, and I prefer not to.
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I love the Maya Angelou quote–had not heard that one. What an unspeakable tragedy! I think I may be a bit insulated by living outside the US. Don’t know. Heard a bit of Obama’s eulogy yesterday and his singing Amazing Grace. WOW! Where are you living now?
This summer I’m going on two-month RV trip with my nearing-ninety Godmother and her cat Pepe le Mew. I leave for the US in a week. The RV is huge, 37-feet. My Godmother will be driving and towing an SUV the entire way. She was a Flamenco dancer during her entire professional life. I’m going to try to blog about our trip and write a book about the 64 beautiful years she and my Godfather, a Venezuelan movie star (I kid you not!), were married, until Raul died last fall one month shy of his 97th birthday.
Sorry I have been away for so long. And good luck unpacking!
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
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Oh Kathy, I’ve missed you so. I’m happy to hear from you my friend. How have you been?I wish I had heard Obama sing Amazing Grace.
So much has happened.
Wow! You have a god mother who was a Flamenco dancer ? I swear you have had the most interesting life I have ever known – I cannot wait for you to write that book. It will be fascinating. And she was married to a Venezuelan movie star – it was made for film.
Oh please do blog about your trip. I will be waiting.
Hugs
Mm
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We moved to Sonoma County. It’s beautiful and easy to take my kids to school – we used to drive for an hour each way to get to school.
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