Politics...
Relationships...
Gossip...
Opinions...
Misconceptions...
These things will always divide you from me.
We will walk to the mirror every day and look ourselves in the eye, but are you proud of who is staring back at you? Are those the things that define you and define your character? Are you happy with the fact you've lost a friend or a family member because we let our opinions and beliefs divide us instead of accepting and embracing our differences? Because you and I will never be the same person, but we can let that be our enemy or we can let that be our greatest strength.
"Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you" (Luke 6:27 NIV).
Of all the lessons in the Bible, this may be the most relevant in this time of hate and greed. We stare at each other as if we are enemies because someone may look different than us or believe different things. As if we don't walk the same pavements, breathe the same air and pray the same prayers. We judge each other because we can because for some reason it makes us feel better about ourselves. But there is no true fulfillment in that behavior or that mindset. There is no true fulfillment in anything other than peace, love, and gratitude.
And then there are those who have done wrong to us. Like you and I. We did wrong to each other. Whether we meant to or not. Whether we knew what we were doing or figured it out before it was too late. And we sit alone, staring at the same stars, who knows how many miles away, maybe a hundred, maybe only a few. And our thoughts turn back at the thought of reuniting because we have burned our bridge one too many times... and we both drowned in the end.
I don't know what you think of me when you star at those stars. I don't know if you wish for my pain or if you don't think of me at all. There are a lot of lessons to learn in a lifetime, but learning how to love... is the hardest lesson of all.
Loving the ones who did you wrong and treated you poorly. Loving the ones who hurt you after you put your trust in them. Loving the ones who you know will never love you again.
But when you look at those stars at night, the ones I look at every night, along with the rest of the world, I pray that you think of the ones who did you wrong along with the ones who did you right. I pray you think of the faces you will never see and the words you will never say. I pray that you choose to live your life without hate because it will never satisfy you. Because when you look in the mirror every morning, you will see that hatred in your eyes. And you will wear it on your shoulders. And you will see it on your tongue.
I know that things may be rough between us now and they may never heal. We may never put our differences aside and exchange an olive branch. We may never look at each other as humans and only see what we don't agree with. We may never even see each other again.
But I will continue to love you every day.
Even if you will never love me back. And it's the hardest thing I will ever do.
