The Beatles once wrote a song that proclaimed, “All you need is love”. The song was released in 1967 which is now regarded as The Summer of Love. It was the start of the hippie movement. Peace, Love, and Rock-n-Roll. It was the same year Elvis married Priscilla. If you looked at the surface of that year, you might think that love was in the air. That things were right and good with the world. Unfortunately the exact opposite was going on. 1967 was the year of "The long hot summer'. Where racial unrest was prevalent around the nation. And in larger cities like Detroit, that unrest erupted into riots. We were in the middle of the Vietnam war and protests against the war were everywhere. People lining the streets, arm in arm. Even Muhammad Ali refused to serve in Vietnam and was subsequently stripped of his Heavy Weight title (it was overturned in 1971). We were in a mess, as a country and as a people.
58 years later, we find ourselves in a similar situation. Our country is divided through the lens of racial, political, and gender ideology. We blame victims for crimes committed against them. We re-write narratives and distort the truth, to better fit what we believe. We print out right lies about our fellow men and women, based in what we think rather than the actual facts. We would rather kill those who disagree with how we think, instead of having a civil debate.
At the end of the day, I think the Beatles nailed it on the head. All you really need is love. We as a people have forgotten how to love. Love is not easy. It's not the butterflies in the belly when your crush is near. It's not shaking the hand of a man who holds the same ideas as you. Love is not a feeling. Love is a verb. It's what you do, day in and day out. Wanna truly love your spouse? Then show them you love them. Not just on anniversaries, birthdays and special occasions. Show them every day. Love the man or woman standing next to you. Love comes in so many forms. From a simple smile, to shaking the hand of your enemy, and everything in between. If you really wanna see a change in the world around you, start with you. Love yourself. Stop allowing excuses to creep into your head that negative about yourself. Next, Love the person next to you. Every chance you get. The Christian Bible references the verb Love approx. 500 times depending on the translation. The Koran mentions it approx. 95 times. And the word Love appears approx. 600 times in Beatles songs. Love is the only answer. As difficult as it may sometimes be. Love conquers all.