On finding common ground.

It seems as though in recent history, not a moment has been so harshly divisive as the one that we find ourselves in now.

The Left Vs. The Right.

One who’s wrong and who’s right.

Whose rights matter more than the other.

In moments of divisiveness, there are causes, situations, which should and do bring all humans together.

Where we all pause for a moment to rethink what’s happening in the environment we so wish to improve upon.

The environment we encompass.

Picking sides is easy and so is pointing fingers.

Though there is common ground to be found; it’s just a matter of conversation without political motive.

It’s a pipe dream to imagine, but it really has come down to the individuals to have their say — on what needs to change, for the better.

Start small, really small, something personal, something which affects everybody the same.

“We all bleed the same”, and we are hurt the same.

Back in 1999, I can vividly remember — tribesman crying, tearing up.

It was an unlikely and haunting image, in an environment so unforgiving and a political atmosphere so clouded; we’d grown used to the violence.

The news of death of one of ours, didn’t seem to have an effect at all.

But these tribesmen of my hometown weren’t crying about the loss of something which happened at home, it was one quite afar; one we’d been told didn’t quite like us, to whom we were seen as a threat.

The Americans?

“Nothing bad ever happens in America, it’s the safest country on the planet ”— we’d naïvely think to ourselves.

Only to find unruly images of two young-men who had committed an act so heinous, there could prayers be heard echoing as we witnessed the voice of the gunshots which would lay claim to 15 lives; at the time it was being reported.

Many missing, unreported.

I was too young to understand, the event that would later be known as “The Columbine Massacre”.

One which changed our thoughts, and for a moment a community so bitter about western society was praying for their survival.

“Sirf Bachey They”, is what one elderly gentleman would keep uttering as he stared into nothingness; eyes glaring red with pain.

Translated into English meaning; “They were only children”.

It was in this moment that we realised we could set aside our differences, because it was only children — and they didn’t deserve what had happened.

A country so hell-belt on keeping their people safe had failed to do so.

The threat, as we’d come to be told by the media, would always come from abroad.

One from us.

From Afghanistan, From Pakistan, or From the Middle-East.

Except, it wasn’t.

It was a failure of a society, a moment of horror, which would unite people of all faiths to come together and pray for those who had departed.

I keep the memory of that day safely locked, in times of divisiveness, in times of hopelessness, to remind myself — There was a time we all came together.

Because it mattered.

It wasn’t a political discussion, it was loss of innocent lives.

A concept so simple that even the most uneducated of the village understood deeply, and prayed for the safety of the survivors.

Looking to them for courage, sending messages of love and perseverance.

Yet the pattern would continue to repeat itself, and it would seem that people kinda just got used to it.

Much like we did back in 1999, lives lost seemed to have lost their meaning because it had become so normal for us to bear witness to the constant violence.

Agendas aside, I still do hope that for a moment that people can come together — for the better of humanity.

For problems that now seem to have fallen on the shoulders of individuals to resolve, and not politicians.

Corporates are required to make a change voluntarily rather than Government regulation.

Private business and franchises would make the decision to cut down on gun-sales, some would stop selling them entirely.

Companies would undertake the issue of Climate Change, because politicians couldn’t seem to get past insulting one another.

Women would take to the streets to claim their right to Equality, because politicians couldn’t seem to grasp the idea of sexual harassment.

Whilst politicians would be busy ridiculing one another to buy votes; the people would take it upon themselves to change things.

In this atmosphere which seems to be so divisive, I do still remain hopeful.

Because back in 1999, if Muslim Tribesmen who weren’t supposed to show weakness, couldn’t help but shed tears, could bring themselves to pray for the survivors of Columbine Survivors; whom they did not know.

I do believe people of America could find common ground.