09/11/2026
As I think back to 25 years ago, i was sitting in an office in Asheville, surrounded by women who had chosen a career dedicated to the empowerment of women & children and the elimination of racism (basically a room full of badass change makers), watching live as the plane hit the second tower. The tears fell not only for the lives lost, but also for the loss of innocence and false sense of the freedom from fear we collectively held. This had happened on our soil. What’s next? What followed was a display of raw love, heroism, neighbors helping neighbors, a community and nation united. In this time of terrible darkness, the light of love took over and won….at least for a bit. In the past 25 years, we have seen our nation delve into polarization, division, and isolation, with an undercurrent of hatred and fear of those who are not just like us. This hurts my heart on so many levels. As we take this opportunity to pause & reflect on the atrocities of this day 25 years ago, I implore you to also think about the days after….when it didn’t matter if you were conservative or liberal, rich or poor, east coast or west coast or anything in between….there was love. Now, ask yourself, why do we wait for tragedy to strike to practice the golden rule of loving one another? What would it look like if you chose to lead with love in every interaction today? Then decided to do it again tomorrow and the next, until love became the bright light of habit? This isn’t just wishful thinking. If we can achieve this love and unity after tragedy, we can achieve it on a regular ol’ Tuesday. When we approach it from this lens, we see hate and division is a choice….a choice that is often programed into us by the powers that be….but I know a not so secret secret, LOVE is more powerful than any division we are being encouraged to have in our nation. So perhaps in honor of all those lost we can let our love light shine today & everyday to create the world we only get a glimpse of after tragedy. Why wait? This life is fleeting. It is time to BE LOVE!