Yesterday was beyond tragic. Yesterday, all the feelings of 9/11 resurfaced and in a moment I felt the stomach lurching panic, the overwhelming sorrow, and the subduing fear that cascaded down upon me in my twenty-first year. Yesterday reminded me of the wickedness that seethes within man and the violence which we are capable of. Hot tears of sorrow welled within my eyes at the memories and emotions that overrode my senses. My empathetic nature ached with knowing those in France suffered the same pain Americans did in 2001. Je suis Paris.
Yet today, while perusing Facebook, I saw images of friends and family covered with the French flag. A sign of solidarity in the face of the abhorrent actions of terrorists. I felt a kindred spirit of love, liberty, and understanding. Nearly every profile picture had been changed and shared a oneness of compassion. In 2001, we were all Americans. In 2015, we are all French.
We are all together in this fight against evil. There is hope. We can stop this. Now is the time to call upon our world leaders and to have them end this wickedness before it can no longer be contained. We should not live in fear.
Our world reels with violence; our communities overflow with it. At a local level, we can all be helpful to each other, keep a watchful eye upon our neighborhoods and report crimes, and volunteer more in our cities to make them better places for our children to grow up in.
Liberte, egalite, fraternite.
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