I told myself I wasn’t going to watch the news this morning. I knew of the Orlando tragedy yesterday, but not many details. Watching the news, I didn’t feel was going to help or change anything.

But I felt compelled to turn on Good Morning America this morning wanting to know more. As I sat at my vanity getting ready, I heard many voices sharing their accounts of what my mind can’t even begin to wrap itself around. I also heard what they were sharing about what each politician said, or didn’t say, or shouldn’t have said.

I started to cry. What can I do, I thought? I’m one small human sitting here in my home so tired of all the hate in the world. And tired is a light word really, because this feeling reaches deep into my bones and my heart as a deep ache of sadness. And it is brought to the surface when a tragedy such as this happens yet again. It’s as if I hold my breath, praying with all my heart that these painful events won’t happen again. Because when they do, I feel helpless.

I don’t know the answer. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I have to say how I feel. I have to do what I think is the right thing. I have to share my voice. Because I believe, that when we put positive energy out into the world it does make a difference. We need more to do the same.

And I turned to my Daily Word this morning after I turned off the news after a half hour because I could no longer listen. It was then that I had my answer of what I could do. I had to turn inward and do what I think will add a light to the world.

What really stuck out for me from reading Daily Word today was this:  “I am the voice of love, compassion, and respect.”

It became my prayer as I moved through my Yoga practice. As I held each pose I silently repeated, “Love. Compassion. Respect.” At the end of my practice I opened my hands like a lotus flower and deposited the words “Love, Compassion, and Respect” into them, then folding my hands inward to close the lotus flower capturing the words and actions we need to do which can heal the world. I then stretched my arms out in front of me until they were fully extended, I opened the flower once again and “let go.” Out into the world is my wish for Love, Compassion, and Respect to take a strong hold on each and everyone’s hearts.

Ending my practice, my hands folded in prayer I said out loud, “Namaste.” And I was moved to tears again. This…this is what we can each do…. we must do.

Nothing else has worked. We have to start at home, inside our own inner worlds. We have to find peace and light within ourselves. We have to begin with loving ourselves. Anyone who commits acts such as this recent tragedy cannot have love for himself to have done this.

I believe this with every fiber in my being that we must love ourselves to love another, have compassion and empathy for ourselves to have it for another, and to respect ourselves in order to respect those around us. And this means we have to all look inwardly and begin to work on our own stuff to begin to put these positive vibrations out into the world to help us all heal and find peace.

While I’m incredibly sad we are facing such a tragedy again, I’m grateful for the reminder of what is of utmost importance, and the work I need to yet do on myself so that I can vibrate more peace.

And this means I won’t be turning to the news for anymore updates, but instead turning to those that uplift and encourage me that love, compassion, and respect is the way. The only way. Because when I do, it’s when hope returns again, and peace resides within me.

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