One of the worst tragedies I've seen since the attacks on September 11, 2001 occurred this past Sunday, June 12. A gunman walked into a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla. and proceeded to gun down 49 people, injuring 53 more.
When I heard of this atrocity, I was horrified. At first, I had heard only that a man had walked into a nightclub and killed more innocent people. I had thought to myself that this was another tragedy; however, the sad fact of the matter is, most tragedies tend to be forgotten soon after they occur. Then, as I read more into it, I heard that it was motivated by the general sexual orientation of the bar, I was horrified. I could not believe that anyone could be so insensitive as to instigate this tragedy. I was enraged.
I'm going to let you in on a secret, something that I have told only one person in my entire life: I identify as bicurious. No, I have never had any relationships with another male; however, that was due more for fear of social ostracism than anything else. That being said, I cannot with any good conscience say that I have experienced the same harassment as anyone who has come out as homosexual; I respect these people beyond measure. Personally, I hated some of the harassment that I personally received in high school as being a participant in 'non-masculine' activities such as band, choir, and drama; however, the harassment that I have witnessed toward some of my friends who have come out as gay or lesbian is disgusting, and is far worse than anything that I ever experienced. I have done my best to fight this prejudice, and I encourage every one of you to do the same.
Now that we have gotten that tidbit out of the way, let us get to the real point of this article. I have a life goal, and I think it's a cute one. My life goal: Be like Ellie and Carl from the movie "Up."
I know, I know, I just talked about homosexuality, then used a heterosexual couple to discuss life goals. However, it is not the people that I refer to as my life goal. My life goal is associated with their actions, and these actions are what we all can take from the movie. You see, Ellie and Carl loved each other unconditionally and with all of their being. They built a life together, and every single event they went through was handled together. Even when Ellie died, Carl continued with their dream of going to the mystical Paradise Falls. Many people would have given up, sinking into the oblivion of depression that often comes with losing a loved one. I cannot blame anyone for this. I have never lost a close loved one, so I could not possibly imagine the pain.
In the wake of this tragedy, I ask each and every one of you: please, if someone is in love, let them be in love. No matter who that person is in love with, leave them be. It is up to them to find the Carl to their Ellie, not you. If that Ellie is actually Eddie, or the Carl is actually Carol, who cares? You should only focus on who makes you happy. Atrocities like this should never happen because we all should worry about finding our own companion, not telling others whether or not their companion is the correct gender. If we can do that, maybe this world could end up a happier place overall.
Who knows? Maybe we'll all find our own Paradise Falls. Just remember: Adventure is out there -- just let each person find their own adventure.
