#DallasStrong

I've been going back and forth if I wanted to do a What I'm Loving Wednesday post today. Last Thursday afternoon I started a recap of the rest of my road trip to post last Friday (because I was determine to not take three months to recap my vacation like I've done in past years). I was going to finish it up on Thursday night when I got back from the Rangers game, that way my post would be ready by Friday morning. And then everything happened in downtown Dallas that night, and honestly, I didn't even think about my blog until yesterday.

All day yesterday I wondered if I needed to say something about what happened here. Unless you have no access to the news or any form of social media, you are aware that five Dallas police officers were killed in the line of duty last Thursday night. I'm not going to go into all the details of the event, I'm sure you are aware of them, and if you aren't, you can Google it.

Over the past years I've mourned with other cities, states, and countries. There have been bombings, explosions, shootings, senseless killings of many people, and all of those tragedies were horrible and sad and I honestly prayed for all of those affected (because I'm not the kind of person who says "I'm praying" when I'm not- so if I'm say I'm praying for you- know that I am). But even though I was sad and mourned for those people, those feelings were nothing compared to what I felt when it happened in MY city. I went from complaining about the Rangers game to seeing my city become a trending topic on social media in a matter of seconds. I went on Twitter to vent about baseball and saw a bunch of different hashtags: #PrayForDallas #DallasShootings #SupportDallas #DallasStrong #WeAreDallas #OneDallas. I couldn't believe it. I read. I cried. I eventually had to log off social media because it was all too upsetting. I didn't get much sleep that night. I don't think many people in Dallas did.

I feel in today's world that if you say you are for a certain movement, people figure you are against another one. We are too quick to judge before we fully understand what a person or group of persons is actually saying. We just ASSUME we know how and what everyone else is feeling (and I mean this about everyone, I'm not singling a group out). We don't take the time to listen. We don't take the time to empathize. I follow people on social media who get butt-hurt if you disagree with them (mom: I'm sorry for saying butt). They have no problem voicing their opinion but as soon as you post or say something they disagree with, they tear you down. They don't ask what you meant. They don't ask you to explain why you feel that way. It's an "I'm right and you are wrong" mentality. I love that we live in a country where we are free to have our own opinions. I know we are never all going to agree on everything, but somewhere in all of our movements/social circles/societies, we have SOMETHING in common. We need to find that common ground and go from there. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of all the hate and hurt. I'm one of those annoying people-pleasers who doesn't like conflict and wants everyone to get along and hug it out. Don't tell me it won't happen because I'm just going to try harder to make it happen.

I've lived in Dallas for 12 years. Next August, I will have lived in Dallas longer than any other place. I may not have grown up here, but this is now my home. This was a tragedy beyond measure. I'm proud of my city and how the people are trying to come together as one. I'm proud of our police chief (and I hope one day to give that man a hug). I'm proud of our mayor. I'm proud of our law enforcement. I am proud to call myself a Dallasite. I'm not saying everyone here is on the same page. I'm not saying there isn't tension or anxiety. I'm not saying we don't have our problems. I'm not saying we are perfect. I'm saying that we are hopeful. I'm saying that we care. I'm saying that we are trying to make the world a better place, starting with Dallas.