It is not an easy feat to accept that we are all different.
Trust me, we have all been there. We try to do everything in our power to blend, to just be another face in the crowd. It becomes ingrained in our heads that you should want to look like a mold of what society has deemed to be ideal, that the pieces of your personality and physical appearance that make you you are somehow bad and need to be hidden.
There has been a lot of violence and hatred going around these past two weeks. My heart goes out to all of the victims, their families, their friends, and everyone else who has been affected by these tragedies. With each new story, from the murder of Christina Grimmie to the death toll from the horrific massacre at The Pulse in Orlando of at least 49 people, I first felt an overwhelming sadness, followed by anger.
The root of my anger comes from the fact that tragedies such as the two I mentioned above originate from a lack of acceptance in our society. People want everyone around them to believe and act exactly as they do. The second they find a particular individual or group who clashes with what they believe, that group or individual becomes a target for their anger. Why they are so angry? I am not even sure if they know the real answer why. But it escalates, it grows exponentially until suddenly there is a multitude of "thems" and only a small selection that makes up "us." The world becomes a messy place all of the sudden, and one doesn't even know where to turn to wrap his or her head around the situation.
Something needs to give. I don't have the right answer to solve the problem. All I do know is that somewhere along the way, as we, the human race, were "evolving" as a species and becoming more "advanced," we were able to convince our children and our children's children that the fellow human beings standing in front of them only exist as a series of labels. We look, and we judge. It's a horrendous thought, if you really stop to think about it.
We may not all look the same, practice the same religion, share the same sexual orientation, etc., but it doesn't mean that we aren't all still people, people who matter. Each and every person who walks on this Earth has a purpose, a worth. His differences, her differences, their differences, your differences, they are what make each individual unique.
And the most incredible part? There is only one you.
And there will only ever be one you, one person who looks exactly like you do and shares all of your wonderful thoughts. You make this world a better place for those around you.
Just think about how ridiculously boring the world would be if we were all the same. Every morning, 7.4 billion people would wake up at the same time, eat the same breakfast, and go to the same job. There would be no reason to have a conversation with anyone, because you would already know everything about every single person you ever met.
Love whoever you want, practice whatever religion you believe in. Ultimately, be happy with the person you are everyday. Don't strive to be another face in the crowd. Your differences have shaped the person you are today, and if someone cannot accept that that is who you are, then that is their problem. That person will never get the chance to hear your story, to learn about who you are as a person and why you are how you are.
That's their loss, because you are amazing :).
Stay strong, and know that you are totally worth it. 7.4 billion people live on this Earth, and you get the honor of being the only you there ever will be.
