There is a lot going on in our local and national communities right now. I could list them, but you know them.
And I will tell you this.
I don’t have any answers.
I don’t have a solution for what teens need to do in Northwest Indiana. I don’t have an answer to end violence in our country, nor the world.
What I do have, though, is an open heart, an open mind, and two ears: the greatest assets we have in this world and something no one can ever take away from us.
Many of you reading this have no idea who I am outside of my online and digital presence with Ideas In Motion Media, and I have no idea who is reading this right now and the thoughts, opinions, and feelings occurring inside of you right now.
But what I want you to know is that if you ever want to talk to me, I am willing to listen. I am not just saying that, either. I want to do it because I want you to know that whatever it is you’re going through that there are people out there who are willing to just listen to what you want to get off your chest.
All I ask that you pay it forward and take the time to listen to others. Take two steps back before you speak, before you make a judgement, and take the time to really listen to what someone is saying. It’s the easiest thing in the world you could ever do, and something that could make the biggest difference, too. Just listen.
Nothing more, nothing less, just listen to others without reservation, judgement, or any desire to offer a counter-argument or your own opinion.
I will be the first to admit that in conversation sometimes I am thinking about the next "great point" I want to make, or the next joke, and what someone is saying goes in one ear and out the other. Most of the time, these conversations don't have major consequences. But a lot of the conversations, major conversations happening in our world and our region right now, are experiencing the same issue: we're talking about what we think rather than listening to how others feel.
Like I said, I don’t have the answers to life’s biggest problems. I just want you to know that if you want to be heard, there’s people here for you.