A Gaping Wound Of Society

Written By Don Shetterly

As I write this, I am seeing the news of the massacre that happened in Las Vegas.  Last night about the time it started, I was awakened by an uneasy feeling.  Just like in the Pulse Nightclub attack, I felt what was going on.  It is not an easy thing to deal with when you physically feel these horror filled moments.

I'm struggling to focus as I write this because I am stunned.  Like so many others, I can find no way to comprehend how anyone could do such a thing to innocent people.  I cannot comprehend what it was like to be there in that moment of what Jason Aldean said, "beyond horrific!"

This continues to be a gaping wound of society.  It feels like one tragedy after another.  It feels like there is no guaranteed tomorrow.  We wonder if we're next.  It frightens and numbs us.

We're living in a country right now where everyone thinks screaming at one another is a good thing.  There is no listening and there is hardly any compassion to be found.  Instead we blame one another.  We point fingers at one another.  We call each other names.

There is no respect for one another.  It seems like we only see each other as an enemy, not as a fellow human that is walking this earth the same way we are.

What will it take to stop this...

I wonder what it will take to stop this.  I wonder when it will end.  It is mind boggling to me just how much hate there is in the world, both directed internally and externally.

The way this event will touch the lives of so many will unfold in the days and months ahead.  I still remember the Pulse Nightclub attack and how it left all of us in this area dazed and confused.  It still hits me in the gut knowing what happened.

The only thing I can add in this blog post with is what someone on twitter wrote.  I think it is a perfect thought for this moment, because I know of no other thing that makes sense to me right now.

Don't let all these tragedies numb your empathy towards humanity...#LasVegas

— Only In Boston (@OnlyInBOS) October 2, 2017

May each of us work to find a way to reverse the course we are on in this world.  It is not up to anyone else but each of us individually.

If we share those tweets that spread the hatred, we're fanning the flames.  If we connect and propagate on those that only know hate and divisiveness, then we're as much a part of the problem.

I hope we choose differently as individuals.  The violence and hatred has got to stop.  It is not helping humanity.  We all have to look long and hard at how we contribute to this.

Let not our actions in a day or what we engage in be part of the gaping wound of society.  Let us be the healing balm applied so the wound disappears and scar tissue forms.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2017 by Don Shetterly

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