Yesterday something horrible happened in my country. Something that is not very common in my country. 

The small community of Tumbler Ridge, a town only a mere two and a half hour drive from me, was home to a school shooting that claimed the lives of nine innocent victims and the shooter. The second worst school shooting in my country’s history.

This is not an article about that, but about what life means. 

In the United States, I could not imagine being a parent sending my kids off to school, knowing they are not safe. The thought of my child being so scared and defenseless in their final moments leaves a pit in my stomach of unfathomable pain. 

We had a power outage in my house last night for a couple of hours and my body went into full-on protection mode. 

Now we don’t know all the details, and I am not one to speculate until the full picture is painted. However, I’m sure it’s safe to say, these tragedies don’t just happen out of nowhere. 

As a society, we’ve become so numb to value of life. We are so divided in almost every aspect of social life. Politics. Religion. We’ve forgotten that we are all the same. Human. 

I have read so much material about mass shootings. How could somebody do such a horrible thing? How could life be taken away without a second thought?

Is it the guns? Is it mental health? Is it bullying? Is it psychopathy? 

Just more talking points to divide the public. 

I believe if we just loved more, we could solve the world’s problems. 

I have really started to look at life through that lens. If we showed our enemies, and our political opponents, and the people we disagree with the same love we show for our family members, how could there be war? How could there be angst? How could there be hate?

When tragedy strikes, we always hear people showing their support by saying thoughts and prayers. Anthony Jeselnik, a brilliant comedian, made a great point about how that is worth nothing. It’s virtue signalling. There’s no action behind it. 

However, I’d rather much hear people extending their thoughts and prayers to the victims and their families than the vulgar response I’ve seen from some commenters. 

If tragedy is used to push a political or religious viewpoint, I feel physically ill. 

No, bringing Jesus back into schools won’t stop this from happening again. No, taking guns away from law abiding citizens won’t prevent this from happening again. 

We have to take it down to the studs. We have to love more. Love your fellow classmates. Love your neighbours. 

Call me a hippy. Call me naive. But how many mentally ill people just want to be accepted and not stepped on? How many bullied kids just want to be accepted for who they are?

I truly believe it starts at home. I know I am going to teach my children to look at the world as a beautiful place. I still believe it is. Yes, horrible things are happening everywhere, and horrible people do walk on this earth. But, it’s very small compared to the beauty in our world.

I am going to teach my children to accept everyone for who they are. It costs absolutely nothing to be kind. You don’t have to be friends with everybody, but you don’t have to be horrible to anybody for any reason.

Hate is taught. Racism is taught. Morals are learned.

Have I been a perfect soul? Not at all. When I was a kid, I was bullied, but I also didn’t stop bullying. I still think about this one kid I went to elementary school with who was bullied pretty badly. I made fun of him just to fit in with others. As an adult, looking back, I am not sure he had a great home life. I hope he found his tribe and gets to live a happy life.

I also didn’t heed my own advice when it came to tragedy. At one point in my life I was heavily anti-gun, and after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, I got into various arguments on social media with friends and family members. Children had died and their parents were going through absolute hell on earth, while I was advocating for my political agenda.

I’ve always had a strong empathic connection with others, and I do strongly believe in my moral code. I was raised with Christian values by two loving parents in a small town. At its core, the basis of the christian religion is an incredible starting point. What Christianity has turned into (along with all organized religion) is a cop-out for one’s behaviour. Take out the whole “if you don’t believe what I believe, you’re going to hell” thing, and I love a lot about it.

Having two parents who loved each other was another huge part of my moral code. Finding your best friend and partner in life is the most amazing gift in this world. Today’s society gives up on love too fast. Staying faithful is almost impossible to so many because when things get hard, it’s easier to walk away. It’s one of the main reasons my first marriage ended.

And finally, the small town aspect. A tight-knit community full of like-minded people who knew and loved their neighbours is something I wish was more prominent in our world today. When your kids could walk a couple blocks and spend time with friends, all the while knowing when the street lights came on it was time to go home.

I’m not saying it’s a perfect way to stop tragedies from happening, but I know if we all had a semblance of that experience, we wouldn’t be breeding this hate in our world.

To honour the victims of the Tumbler Ridge tragedy, I hope this article finds you seeking out a world where we spread love, unity, and kindness over hate, division, and animosity.

Please listen to this Chuck Wicks song “If We Loved” and really hang on every word.