Dear Orlando,

My heart is going out to not only you but also to the waning perception of safety in one of the most entertaining cities in the country. Words alone will never be able to expression the sincere sobriety expressed to everyone affected by first Christina Grimmie's death, then the Pulse nightclub victims, and finally the death of 2 year-old Lane Graves by alligator attack. These three events are all devastating, to say the least, and should not be taken lightly. And though there is so much hate in this world, there is also an abundance of love.

1 Corinthians 13:13 reads " And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love" (NIV). As I was driving to south Florida from Orlando, Florida, late last night, I read a billboard which said, "Pray for our Orlando" with "land" highlighted, ultimately reading "Pray for our land". Is it not ironic how out of despair, tragedy, even hate, prayer is what billboards are being plastered with. There are even GoFundMe accounts set up for the surviving Pulse victims. After such a terrible past week of death, there is a bit of humanity to still hold onto. There is still faith for a better tomorrow, and there is hope for understanding and closure following all of the horrific fatalities. As for love, Grimmie's Facebook and Twitter accounts have been overloaded with messages of sympathy and grief, and her Christian faith has been displayed once again on a larger scale. In the case of the Graves family's devastation, numerous online articles have arisen some in empathy with the mother and others defending the parents' ability to protect the child. For each traumatic event, there is an air of humanity restored to our grieving hearts. There is even a sense of desperation to unify our country after such earth-shattering revelations from Orlando news reports.

In no way whatsoever are the tragedies of Orlando, Florida, a good thing. For someone to be so obsessed with a singer and shoot her and for 49 people to be slain because of one man's internal conflicts is nothing more than a showcase of how demented others can become not only in their mind but also in their spirit. They are not "well in their soul" as the old hymn suggest. No, they must have entered into such a dark place and somehow convinced themselves their actions where justifiable. Well, they were not justified at all. They were cowards. Both murderers were ultimately dead at the end of both escapades.

Looking at the death of a two-year old boy is never easy, regardless of the cause of death. However, to be drowned by an alligator in a trademark "Happiest place on earth" is ironic. A once beloved family vacation spot now has its reputation forever tarnished. Granted, the passing of Lane Graves is certainly not Disney nor the parents' fault, it is still horrendous and difficult to even fathom. But, it has still happened and is very much real.

So the questions we as both readers and Americans are faced with now, is "How do we react to these incidents?"

Do we point fingers and blame Christina for being too nice, and is that why her killer was so obsessed with her? Or was she too pretty? Maybe security was not tight enough. And as we read article after article concerning the night club massacre, readers can definitely place the blame on the killer's homophobia. Or blame the family...surely they realized he needed mental help. How about the young boy's drowning? Oh yes, let us blame Disney World, the parents, and even the sign warning people to stay out of the lagoon but was not exactly where the attack happened. Those are all excuses and fingers being pointed in all the wrong directions. Yes, you can blame anyone or anything you want whether it be an obsessed fan, a homophobic man, or even the alligator itself, but what good does blaming others do? No good at all. Instead, we are all growing with angst, confusion, and more hurt than before. Please take away pointing fingers and look at all of the turmoil our world is engulfed in. In less than a week, three dramatic events took place in you, Orlando, and America is too busy reading hate filled posts to remember faith, hope and love.

So, let us stop blaming others and get back to what matters. Let us begin loving one another and sincerely hope for the best in and for one another. Instead of spreading hatred like wildfire to people who differ from one another, let us try to become unified under God again. Because at the end of the day, this is America, and we are still "One Nation Under God".

Sincerely,

A Writer Whose Heart Goes Out to Orlando