I don’t talk about politics— well, I try not to anyhow. It does me no good. I have never had a political conversation where I have changed my mind nor have I changed the mind of the person I’m talking to. I long ago stopped posting updates, tweets, and statuses about it because when you yell in a room full of people yelling, I find it hard to believe anyone is going to have a sudden change of heart.
“Love Trumps Hate.” Where is it then? I see posts and tweets from both sides completely ripping each other apart and it’s so heartbreaking. What are we doing? Starting fights and bruising egos? That’s what I see. I see people so driven to prove other people wrong, they lose sight of what they’re fighting for, whatever that fight may be. Would it kill us to put aside our differences? To agree to disagree? We’re on the same team, let’s work together, build each other up and encourage each other. Martin Luther King Jr. famously said, “Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” So love, forget about politics for one minute and have an actual conversation with someone.
One of my resolutions for 2017 was to talk to people on a more personal level. Have you ever noticed that you love everyone close to you, despite what differences you have? Why is that? We put aside those differences because we care about that person, and for the most part we understand where that person is coming from in the decisions they make. I don’t expect to get to know everyone I talk to on a personal level, but through talking to them, and asking questions I may not have asked before, I get to know where they’re coming from and I build a connection with that person despite having different viewpoints.
Politics are vital to our country, we need representation and it’s important to talk about. However, I’m done arguing. I’m putting the twitter fingers away. We’ve been so caught up in being right we forgot we’re fighting for what we think is best for our country. We’ve gotten off track and we need to get back on. Pick your battles, don’t say things you’re going to regret. We are all Americans, and we are in this fight together.
I’m going to use my voice to bring people up. We are the United States of America, it’s time we prove that. America made its decision fairly and we're stuck with it for now. If you don’t agree with something, speak up, but don’t tear someone down while doing so. And if someone speaks up for something they disagree with, don’t tear them down either. (Unless they’re spewing hate speech, then fight back with positive speech.) We live in a free country, we have that right. So speak up, stand up for what you believe in. Encourage each other and above all, work together. We’ve had our disagreements, but just like every great relationship we’ll work through them and come back stronger.
