A Choice

The Mathew Shepherd case raised questions around the world about societal attitudes on controversial issues. The 20/20 special on Mathew Shepard says " at the time there were so many hate crimes and this one stood out". But the real question is: why? Mathew Shepard's story is chilling and sometimes uncomfortable to read about but his story was meant to be heard. The truth about social attitudes had to be uncovered. Mathew Shepard's death may or may not have been a hate crime but the truth is that his situation forced people to think about their attitudes towards him. They were faced with the question of which is more important to me: human compassion and acceptance or a very conservative and literal view on the bible. Essentially does love or hate prevail?
Some chose love. The scene in The Laramie Project where there is parade banner in Mathews honor and hundreds of people join in is heart-warming. It illustrates that people care and that Aaron McKinney and Russel Henderson were exceptions. Others dealt with a more difficult decision of choosing love against their previous beliefs. People in both the video clips and the books say that the situation in Laramie after Mathew Shepard's death say that their view change and equality was revealed.
Others chose hate. In the 20/20 video Fred Phelps,leader of the Westboro Baptist Church chose to embrace hate, even at Mathews funeral. This shows that although as a society we are making a step in the right direction there will still be hate filled people. The extent to which Fred Phelps demonstrated his hate is appalling and a rarity. However, there will always be others that are more silent with their views, and they are entitled to those views.
I recognize that Mathew's case is complex and it may  or may not have been a crime motivated by hate. But the real aftermath of the crime was the uncovering of a social flaw where people were forced to make a choice.
1 John 4:7-8  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.  Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Motivation to Survive (Memoir reflection #3

One can argue that success drives society, or more specifically the fear of failure. It is the ultimate failure to not be successful, if that makes any sense. In The Secret to Success by Eric Thomas,a motivational speaker,  the idea of motivation as the driving force to success is argued. Thomas argues that " you have to want to be successful more than you want to breath". In order to be successful food,sleep and family have to be sacrificed, is basically what Thomas is saying. Although this is a great tip for gaining success monetarily it does not explore the idea that success can come in all different forms. Yes, to really work for a goal you will sacrifice, but for most success is finding a balance in life between family, a career, a social life, and personal happiness. Every definition of success will be different for every person but Thomas is correct that the work that goes into success is long and hard and that you have to find motivation.

The area where success is clearly defined is in the sports arena. It is clear as day if an athlete is successful or not. In Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success by Phil Jackson, Jackson explains what it takes to be successful and how it feels to be a great success. Success is a combination of things including; heart,compassion,strength, will-power and dedication. Jackson as a former NBA player and world renown coach knows a thing or two about success. Jackson had a well rounded view on character as well as success and has become a role model to many. And in the words of Jackson " Always keep an open mind and compassionate heart" which could very well be the key to success.