I was at the dinner table yesterday evening with my boyfriend's family. Like many American families, in this day it seems, we began to talk about the lovely world of politics, the world-wide happenings and TV news.

His grandfather began to tell a story about a gathering or festival that he saw once: a half a million people gathered into one place, all watching and enjoying the same show. Peacefully and mindlessly, they are living their lives doing something they enjoy and are surrounded by others that are all partaking in the same activity.

And then he began to sing, right there at the kitchen table with his arms spread high. He sang nearly the entire chorus of this piece, his eyes full of passion while he echoed this timeless tune.

"And at the end of the performance," he continued, "the crowd, all 500,000 of them, began to clap and cheer. Picture this, Kaylee, half of a million people all clapping at the same time. It gives you goosebumps! And they are so damn happy, so content! THAT is what life is all about: these magical moments where everyone is together and the same, even when each and every one has their differences. Where we all agree on one thing even with all of our faces unique. That is what this world should be made of. Not lists of terrorist attacks and discrimination."

When you get down to it, the reality is that we are all different. There are hundreds of thousands of cultures and identities and groups of people. And, of course, not every single person on this planet is going to agree. And yet, not everyone recognizes that there is little reason to retaliate against those who only are just like us, just a different shade to their skin or a different belief in their minds.

"But have you ever realized that when you look up at an electrical wire, the ones on the side of the road, and there are birds all sitting with each other, all in a row. Well," he said, "they are all the same birds of a feather, sitting there together on that power line."