The beach, the heat and the nightlife: these three elements made up my entire trip to Florida. Despite the long drive and ride, I've enjoyed myself throughout the duration of my vacation. Going to hang out with friends and visiting my twin brother, I ended up remembering a very important situation that I made sure to make a part of my itinerary.
Starting my vacation off in Miami was great. I enjoyed the nightlife and food. However, one of the most memorable parts about my trip was going to Orlando. I made it my responsibility as a human being and an American man, to visit the memorial that was setup for the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting. I reacted in two very emotional ways.
My first reaction was heartbreak. I automatically thought, "How could anyone do this?" It hurt me so much to see that something like this could happen out of hate. I wish I could've cried, because it was literally too much to handle. I make my statement, here, before I write any more, I believe in love, and just like Lin Manuel said this year at the Tony awards, "Love is love is love is love is love is love," and that's how it will remain in my heart.
This brings me to my second reaction, love. There were many items at the memorial. Flowers, photos and even home-made memorandums. One that stuck out to me the most was a home-made sign, painted rainbow...
It read:
"Tears make Kaleidoscopes in your eyes.
And hurt, I know you're hurting, but so am I.
And love if your wings are broken, borrow mine, so yours can open,too, cause I'm gonna stand by you."
I know it sounds incomplete. That was my first assumption about it. Then I thought, it IS incomplete. It's incomplete because someone wrote it for their loved one who they thought would be here forever with them.
Heartbreak and love. That's what I felt, alright. One of the best parts about this particular trip was seeing the love of others as well. It was good to see many people stopping by to pay their respects. It serves as a reminder that there are still people who care. Not saying that if you don't go, you don't care. Just saying it was good to see that. Sometimes family members of the victims are there to speak to visitors, including a survivor, who spoke with my brother's girlfriend when she visited the day before.
With that, if you find yourself in Orlando, please stop by Pulse Memorial and see for yourself the outpour of love that is happening there. I'm very glad to say it was life-changing for me. I am Orlando. We are Orlando. #OrlandoStrong
