Let's Not So Easily Forget

August 2, 2016

I think it's important to daily take stock of emotions, feelings, questions, concerns, and everything else swirling around inside myself.

Today, I feel content.

I feel light.

I feel at peace.

Three weeks ago, I was none of those things.

I was heartbroken. Disgusted. Outraged. Sickened. Horrified. Scared. Restless. Upset.

But now I'm not.

On one hand, I'm glad. The heavy feelings are hard to carry for long. They're a burden that nearly breaks me completely apart, and I'm grateful when the weight of them lifts.

But have I already forgotten the grief that overcame me three weeks ago?

Am I growing numb to it all?

Am I becoming passive, indifferent, blind?

The headlines three weeks ago shook me to my core.

There have been headlines since, but I haven't wept the same hot, angry tears.

I don't want to forget so easily.

I don't want my outrage to be like a lit match, dying out within minutes.

I want to channel those feelings into action that is lasting, that is meaningful, that is real.

We tweeted in anger three weeks ago. We emailed our police departments. We tweeted #blacklivesmatter. We demanded change, we demanded justice, we demanded accountability. But now? We're back to talking about nominees and rose ceremonies and celebrity feuds and the latest Pokemon we've caught.

We so easily forget.

I feel content now, but content isn't what I want to be.

I want to throw those matches into a burning fire in my soul, one that I tend to, one that I stoke, one that I feed, one that I use as fuel for change and use to light the darkness around me.

Let's be firestarters, friends.

Let's not so easily forget.