Today we live in a new America. We are seeing things in the news that we’ve never seen before. We are seeing armies marching our streets and armed men kidnapping people under the orders of Trump. While all of this is going on, our communities are being lit on fire by COVID-19.

Nothing seems innocent anymore. We no longer trust each other, I fear for the future. In some instances many of us seem to be on edge due to a feeling of unrest, which seems to get more uncomfortable as the days go by. A few days ago my daughter and I went walking in our park. I noticed a van parked under a tree and a feeling that I haven’t felt in ages crept up once again. I felt fear for my safety and my daughter’s safety because the person sitting on the ground happened to be a white woman with a dog.

I immediately grabbed onto my daughter and pulled her away from the area. After I made it home, I processed my feelings and started thinking about another time those kind of feelings showed up. It was right after 9/11 when a row full of Middle Eastern men started filling into the seats next to me. I went into a near panic mode and tried to friend the men to death! By the time the flight was over people thought I was married to the man next to me. I vowed to never again let that type of irrational fear dictate my actions.

Sadly, in the park, I repeated that process. However, this time I didn’t even try to go up and spark a conversation, I simply raced off with my child before words could be spoken. Maybe I will see the lady again at the park minus her dog and then I can say hello. I will be eagerly awaiting another chance to be the person I want to be.

Fear is the fuel for prejudice, so we must fight against letting fear overtake our hearts. Good Night.