Day 155 of #LiveWell2017

Last week a known White Supremacist on a MAX train in Portland, OR began yelling remarks of hate toward various ethnicities and religions, including at two young women sitting on the train. When several men tried to intervene, to de-escalate the situation, he turned on them and stabbed them in their necks. Two of them men died, one survived. This atrocity of terror occurred not far from where I live in this city that I love.

Since then, the outpouring of support, not only for the families of these courageous young men and women, but for the city, for strangers, for LOVE and PEACE, TOLERANCE and ACCEPTANCE, has been remarkable. In the week that has passed a memorial to the victims, a shrine to peace and love has emerged at the site of the murders.

We visited the MAX station and witnessed the messages that have been left. It is a moving experience to see how deeply people feel and how willing they are to share their thoughts and support for those who were victims of hate. With the chalk left in a bucket nearby, I added my own small message. I wrote – simply – LOVE.

I am so grateful for the LOVE I felt there, for the people who walk through this world showing their love in small ways each day, sharing space and life and breath with those who need them most. Written in chalk on the sidewalk, I saw these words:

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction: Love is greater than hate.

The reaction to this act of terrorism and hate has been love, for sure, and if we work hard to make it so, LOVE will conquer HATE. I am grateful for LOVE.