from facebook, a post from september. worthy of reposting, in my opinion.

i'm already in tears this morning. i am crying because i have realized what i TRULY want for this year. i want our differences to be set aside. i want the world to understand that it is our differences that MAKE us stronger. that CELEBRATE humanity, in all forms. it hurts when i think of children starving in africa because of famine and war, but it hurts even more when

i think of children starving in this, the wealthiest nation on earth, because of bigoted hate and small minded fear. because someone has a different skin color, lives in a different neighborhood or zip code, is a different religion, has had tragedy visited on them that you couldn't imagine, is that any reason for them to starve, to go without? in the past 2 1/2 years, especially the 15 months, my family has struggled. we have come close to the brink. i have been nearly hopeless many times, but we some how, some way, kept hanging on to that one slim thread of hope that was left. there are so many that don't have that. and we ignore them. it's a tough world when you get to that point, when there's no hope, when you have no where to go. pride has taught us NOT to reach out. we're taught that lesson from childhood. maybe we should start teaching our children it's okay to accept help. it's okay to be gracious and admit we can't do it all. i know i wouldn't admit i couldn't do it all. and we had some pretty tough times. they're not over yet. they won't be for a long time, but i've gotten back in touch with part of me that reminds me that it's okay to say, "i can't do this alone and i need help." and THAT is a HUGE step in becoming part of the compassionate human race.