Speak now or forever hold your peace....
Final revision (I hope):
Tolerance seems like a value all should possess. The world is becoming smaller, and people rub shoulders with others whose personal values they can’t understand but don’t want to offend. Certainly tolerance is essential in maintaining peace between parties who disagree with each other but wish to keep from fighting. I used to be tolerant, but two years ago, one boy showed me the importance of a value greater than tolerance. Tony was the smartest kid in our grade, but he was also a good person, and we liked each other immediately.
I don’t remember when I learned he was gay. I think at first I heard it as a rumor, one I didn’t quite believe, but when he founded our school’s Gay-Straight Alliance, the rumors were validated. I didn’t attend, partly because I thought I would be out of place there, but also because I knew that going would put me out of place with my friends. I still heard what was going on, since the club’s founding members were in most of my classes. I heard stories of comments made in passing, signs announcing meeting times found in the trash, parents of members forbidding their children to attend. Aside from the names of the officers, the official club roster for that year was empty.
Still, the meetings continued; Tony stood even stronger when persecuted. I admired that strength within him, could not understand the criticism of my acquaintances, and finally reached the decision that I should do something, even if none of my friends would stand beside me. I wasn’t sure if I was doing the right thing, but it felt right, much more so than my previous inaction.
When GSA sponsored the Day of Silence, I was provided with the perfect opportunity to act. The idea was simple: participants would dress all in black and remain silent, to symbolize how victims of discrimination are silenced. I was nervous that day when I showed up in all black, afraid of what others would think of me. But when I walked to my first period class, and saw other black-clad students slowly joining me, I felt strong. The smile Tony gave me that morning was enough to get me through the day. The experience was an eye-opener: not just for those who saw how many of their peers wore black, but also for the participants, like myself, who realized that sometimes the best way to make use of freedom of speech is to say nothing at all.
This year, it’s rumored that the Christian Ministries club intends to put on a “Day of Truth” in opposition to our Day of Silence. Their plans are to wear all white, though what truths they’re telling I don’t know. Unconditional love for others regardless of differences is the greatest truth, and on whatever day they schedule, I’ll come wearing white--a shirt bearing the words, “‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater...”
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Any last-minute changes I should make before submitting the forms?
Tolerance seems like a value all should possess. The world is becoming smaller, and people rub shoulders with others whose personal values they can’t understand but don’t want to offend. Certainly tolerance is essential in maintaining peace between parties who disagree with each other but wish to keep from fighting. I used to be tolerant, but two years ago, one boy showed me the importance of a value greater than tolerance. Tony was the smartest kid in our grade, but he was also a good person, and we liked each other immediately.
I don’t remember when I learned he was gay. I think at first I heard it as a rumor, one I didn’t quite believe, but when he founded our school’s Gay-Straight Alliance, the rumors were validated. I didn’t attend, partly because I thought I would be out of place there, but also because I knew that going would put me out of place with my friends. I still heard what was going on, since the club’s founding members were in most of my classes. I heard stories of comments made in passing, signs announcing meeting times found in the trash, parents of members forbidding their children to attend. Aside from the names of the officers, the official club roster for that year was empty.
Still, the meetings continued; Tony stood even stronger when persecuted. I admired that strength within him, could not understand the criticism of my acquaintances, and finally reached the decision that I should do something, even if none of my friends would stand beside me. I wasn’t sure if I was doing the right thing, but it felt right, much more so than my previous inaction.
When GSA sponsored the Day of Silence, I was provided with the perfect opportunity to act. The idea was simple: participants would dress all in black and remain silent, to symbolize how victims of discrimination are silenced. I was nervous that day when I showed up in all black, afraid of what others would think of me. But when I walked to my first period class, and saw other black-clad students slowly joining me, I felt strong. The smile Tony gave me that morning was enough to get me through the day. The experience was an eye-opener: not just for those who saw how many of their peers wore black, but also for the participants, like myself, who realized that sometimes the best way to make use of freedom of speech is to say nothing at all.
This year, it’s rumored that the Christian Ministries club intends to put on a “Day of Truth” in opposition to our Day of Silence. Their plans are to wear all white, though what truths they’re telling I don’t know. Unconditional love for others regardless of differences is the greatest truth, and on whatever day they schedule, I’ll come wearing white--a shirt bearing the words, “‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater...”
***********************************
Any last-minute changes I should make before submitting the forms?