Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things.

It has almost become a tradition of sorts, an unofficial tradition. On September 11th, I read the blog post that John Mayer wrote just days after the tragedy occurred in New York on that memorable day in 2001. I read it and feel a sense of power and pride. I read it and almost feel a sense of arrogance because I am a United States citizen.

I shouldn't have those feelings, regardless what the circumstances have brought upon my country or my personal being. I try to show loving kindness through all of my thoughts and actions, but sadly that is not the reality of who I am. I try to believe that no man or woman is greater than any other, yet I constantly catch myself judging others for their actions and believing that my way of doing things is better.

In the days following September 11th, we were a country united under an umbrella of fear, hostility, sadness, liberty, and an unknown future. We understood that we truly, and always have and forever will, had more in common than that which divides us. We raised our country's flag in honor of those we lost and those who work to protect our rights and freedoms.

Where have those days gone?

I write this on September 10th with a sense of sadness for the country I live in and its people. We have become so consumed in our own lives, beliefs, opinions, and possessions that we refuse to listen to the world around us. I don't have the answers to fixing the big problems we face, but I hope I am able to do my best where I can. I hope I am able to help my fellow countrymen if they should need it.

I hope...

And no good thing ever dies,
B