You’ve all seen the news, I’m sure. Yet another deadly shooting here in the U.S., last week’s shooting in Tel Aviv, yesterday’s bombing at the Shanghai Airport. The world seems to have gone mad.

And while we try to comprehend the enormity and the grief of these murders and attacks, we have the 24 hour news showing us how political candidates are trying to use this to further their own narcissistic agendas, and the news itself raking in the profits over sowing discord and more fear.

I’m tired of the fighting. I’m tired of the ugliness.

I’ve begun fasting from television entirely, as it seems I hear misogyny and racism and still more hatred every time I turn the damn thing on.

Kindness. Compassion. These wordless signs of true character feel like what we need most, as a world, to begin to heal. I agree with Maya Angelou that violence and hatred have never solved any problems, just created more of the same.

Short of becoming isolationists, I don’t see an ironclad “political” solution here. I don’t even think isolation is the answer anyway. After all, I’ve watched neighborhoods transform from places where you’re welcomed by the community when you move in (I fondly remember deliveries of cookies) to places where you barely know your neighbors anymore at all. That’s just within my lifetime.

I know my neighbors. I have their phone numbers. We look out for each other, as much as we can.

Let’s have a little more of that, shall we? Maybe just a moment to stop and pay attention to the people living here with us. It’s not a fail-safe, and I’m not advocating it as a way to stop terrorism, but maybe just spread a little bit of good amidst all of this destruction.

Condolences to all of the victims, their families, and all of those affected by the violence of this past week.

You will not be forgotten.

Blessings to you all…