A Different Kind of Rage

Deidra Yordy
Sep 11, 2025
3 min read

Category: 💔 A Different Kind of Rage

✦“We can’t undo the loss, but we can honor it by refusing to stay the same. Being human means daring to move forward, together.”✦

This one’s a little different. I know so many of us are carrying heavy hearts right now. With all the current events around the world, and most importantly in our own backyards, it feels like we’re drowning in grief and frustration.

And while we may argue, disagree, and stand on opposite sides of beliefs and opinions — there’s one thing we should all be able to agree on: no one deserves to die at the hands of another person.

The Weight of Violence

As of August 31, 2025, there have already been 309 mass shooting incidents in the United States.

302 lives lost.
1,354 wounded.

Those are not just numbers — those are parents, children, siblings, best friends, teachers, neighbors. Gone. Wounded. Traumatized.

And just yesterday, America was reminded of that pain again.

Charlie Kirk, 31, a public figure and father of two, was shot and killed while speaking at a university. Whether you agreed with his politics or not, he was a son, a husband, and a father who will never tuck his kids in again.
In Colorado, Desmond Holly, 16, opened fire at his high school, injuring classmates before taking his own life. One victim, 18-year-old Matthew Silverstone, is still fighting for his life. Another student, still unnamed, lies in critical condition. These are children — kids who should have been worried about homecoming, football games, and college applications.

Yes, Desmond pulled the trigger — and that choice devastated lives. But he was also a 16-year-old child who should have been in math class, not with a gun in his hand. That is not just his failure, it’s ours as a society.

These names represent only a fraction of the 302 lives lost and 1,354 wounded in U.S. mass shootings this year. Every statistic has a heartbeat behind it. Every life mattered.

A Broken System

Our system is broken.

People suffering from mental illness are left to fall through the cracks. Families beg for help and find doors slammed shut. The lack of resources, support, and care fuels chaos.

We may never all agree on the Second Amendment. But here’s the truth: guns don’t pull their own triggers. People do. And when people are hurting, untreated, and pushed to the edge without help — the result is what we’re living in now: fear, hate, violence, devastation.

The Division That Destroys Us

When our media, our leaders, and our public figures profit off dividing America, they fan the flames of hate. Hate breeds violence. Violence kills. And it’s tearing us apart from the inside out.

But here’s the thing: we are a nation built on diversity. That’s supposed to be our strength, our beauty, our backbone.

I grew up in a diverse community. I’ve had the privilege of traveling not only around this country but around the world. And let me tell you: not one person is better than another. We all have qualities that make the world go round.

We’ve just forgotten how to love our neighbors.

What We Forgot

The Bible says it simply: “Love thy neighbor as thyself.”

That command wasn’t given with conditions. It didn’t say only love the neighbor who votes like you, looks like you, or prays like you. It said love your neighbor — period.

And somewhere along the way, we forgot that.

My Plea to America

So here is my plea — not as a Republican or a Democrat, not as a conservative or liberal, but as a human being:

Stop. Look around you. Feel the weight of what’s happening. Stop scrolling past the pain. Stop letting politics excuse the death of children.

Remember that we are brothers and sisters. That’s not a metaphor — it’s a fact of humanity. We belong to each other. And until we start acting like it, nothing will change.

This isn’t about sides anymore. This is about survival.

This is about choosing to build a country where our kids don’t grow up rehearsing lockdown drills, where mental illness isn’t a death sentence, and where love for our neighbors isn’t just a Bible verse we’ve forgotten how to live.

This is about remembering what it means to be human.

Category: 💔 A Different Kind of Rage

✦“We can’t undo the loss, but we can honor it by refusing to stay the same. Being human means daring to move forward, together.”✦

This one’s a little different. I know so many of us are carrying heavy hearts right now. With all the current events around the world, and most importantly in our own backyards, it feels like we’re drowning in grief and frustration.

And while we may argue, disagree, and stand on opposite sides of beliefs and opinions — there’s one thing we should all be able to agree on: no one deserves to die at the hands of another person.

The Weight of Violence

As of August 31, 2025, there have already been 309 mass shooting incidents in the United States.

302 lives lost.

1,354 wounded.

Those are not just numbers — those are parents, children, siblings, best friends, teachers, neighbors. Gone. Wounded. Traumatized.

And just yesterday, America was reminded of that pain again.

Charlie Kirk, 31, a public figure and father of two, was shot and killed while speaking at a university. Whether you agreed with his politics or not, he was a son, a husband, and a father who will never tuck his kids in again.

Yes, Desmond pulled the trigger — and that choice devastated lives. But he was also a 16-year-old child who should have been in math class, not with a gun in his hand. That is not just his failure, it’s ours as a society.

These names represent only a fraction of the 302 lives lost and 1,354 wounded in U.S. mass shootings this year. Every statistic has a heartbeat behind it. Every life mattered.

A Broken System

Our system is broken.

People suffering from mental illness are left to fall through the cracks. Families beg for help and find doors slammed shut. The lack of resources, support, and care fuels chaos.

We may never all agree on the Second Amendment. But here’s the truth: guns don’t pull their own triggers. People do. And when people are hurting, untreated, and pushed to the edge without help — the result is what we’re living in now: fear, hate, violence, devastation.

The Division That Destroys Us

When our media, our leaders, and our public figures profit off dividing America, they fan the flames of hate. Hate breeds violence. Violence kills. And it’s tearing us apart from the inside out.

But here’s the thing: we are a nation built on diversity. That’s supposed to be our strength, our beauty, our backbone.

I grew up in a diverse community. I’ve had the privilege of traveling not only around this country but around the world. And let me tell you: not one person is better than another. We all have qualities that make the world go round.

We’ve just forgotten how to love our neighbors.

What We Forgot

The Bible says it simply: “Love thy neighbor as thyself.”

That command wasn’t given with conditions. It didn’t say only love the neighbor who votes like you, looks like you, or prays like you. It said love your neighbor — period.

And somewhere along the way, we forgot that.

My Plea to America

So here is my plea — not as a Republican or a Democrat, not as a conservative or liberal, but as a human being:

Stop. Look around you. Feel the weight of what’s happening. Stop scrolling past the pain. Stop letting politics excuse the death of children.

Remember that we are brothers and sisters. That’s not a metaphor — it’s a fact of humanity. We belong to each other. And until we start acting like it, nothing will change.

This isn’t about sides anymore. This is about survival.

This is about choosing to build a country where our kids don’t grow up rehearsing lockdown drills, where mental illness isn’t a death sentence, and where love for our neighbors isn’t just a Bible verse we’ve forgotten how to live.

This is about remembering what it means to be human.

Comments