8 July - The Dallas Shootings
Thoughts on this difficult day - especially for those of us from Texas.
I am lucky to work in a job that brings me in close contact with many people on any given day. I woke up this morning in Fort Lauderdale and from the time I left my room to the time I sat down in the cockpit, I interacted with dozens, maybe a hundred people. From tipping a van driver, to buying a coffee to thanking our passengers for their business, I tried to make a lot of eye contact today.
I am not going to go all rainbow touchy-feely on this social media. I encountered a diverse crowd. Hell, we are all diverse in so many different ways - skin color being one of the most obvious.
Something I can take away from that eye and spoken contact today is that people are good. There are monsters out there, but nearly everyone is good and (though it can be a little hard to see) we usually treat each other very well.
I once saw a woman fall down in an airport terminal. Another woman, a stranger nearby - roughly the same age, very different skin color - came right to her aid. This is what any of us would expect to happen and exactly what did.
I wish our leaders would emphasize less the groups we supposedly belong to or the methods we can readily use to harm one another. Us versus them won't work. It's only Us.
