I feel as though the world was loud this weekend.

In some ways it was good. In some ways it was not so good.

We showed our kids both aspects.

Of course there were questions and confusion. Kids are so innocent. Their natural instinct is to love and trust which makes much of what is going difficult to understand. They understand why people are angry – that was the easiest to explain. But try explaining to a 9-year-old why breaking into a Nordstroms and stealing the clothes or lighting the grocery store on fire is legal and no one stops them. In his words, “That just doesn’t make sense. Not at all. Why did the police not stop them?” And then you realize as a parent, you don’t have all the answers.

And then I came across this quote by Nelson Mandela and it gave me hope.

“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” ― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom.

Hate appears to be prevalent (which is a learned behavior), but love can be taught and I can teach it within my home.

More love and more conversations…and less watching the news! 🙂