With the murder of a talented, young singer, the heartbreaking case of the Stanford rape victim, and the Orlando shooting in which 50 were killed, the essence of what it is to be a person is collapsing and humaneness is lost in meaning. Humanity is being shoved under the rug where it is forgotten and labeled insignificant.

Why is this happening? Why are these choices being made? Who gets the power to determine whose lives are ruined and whose lives carry on untouched?

All three of these awful occurrences share a similar trend in which a very terrible person decided to disrupt the lives of innocent people. Not only have these terrible people stepped on the lives of the people directly effected, but they have changed the lives of the family and friends of the victims.

I will never be able to understand how someone could commit such appalling acts; acts of hatred, filled with disregard for other people and the lives they lead. I know that we are only human and that no one person is all good or all bad. Both are inside of us and there are claims that sync behavior to the environment you are raised in, the temperament you are born with and the character that you have. But, at the end of the day, what matters is that we have the ability to decide whether the good side or bad side dominates. We as people have the power of self-determination. We have the power to make choices. It is a conscious decision to uplift human personality and work toward peace, kindness and compassion.

Cruelty, immorality and hatred are choices. From these three events we know that sometimes the good side is not chosen. That these decisions made by people can be very poor decisions with horrible consequences.

How do we solve this? How do we prevent tragedy and terrible things? How do we determine what choices are being made?

You get up in the morning and you make the decision that on that day you’ll come down on the side of good. On the side of kindness and generosity. Vow to do it even when it’s hard -- especially when it’s hard. Place a value on the things that make the world brighter. See the forest for the trees and the beauty in everything. Use that to fuel your choices. Embrace the good and let it support you through the challenge of choosing. Don’t let the bad side dominate and the incomprehensible occur.