Imagine

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...

I don't understand our world, and it hurts me to think about it. I'm writing in tears today because I can't understand all the cruelty in our world. Why are people like Lennon, ML King, JFK and Gandhi being killed? How is spreading messages of peace and equality something that demands a death sentence? Why are the people who care shunned as extremists? Where does this need to oppress come from? I usually like to believe that people are inherently good but when I think about the amazing people that have been lost at the hands of others I begin to question my optimism.
Why am I told that I'm naive for believing in a better future for this world of ours? So many before me have had visions of better futures for their countries, ethnic and social groups and each one of them have helped craft a better future. I'm under no delusion that I in anyway compare to any of those that I have mentioned already but if I can use the media and my reach as a journalist to make some difference that's enough for me. I want to help so badly because there is so much bad in the world, but there is more good and if enough people are willing to put their hands up and fight for the good I truly believe that we can make the world a better place. Our planet will never be a utopia but there is so much room for improvement if we're willing to work for it. Nothing comes easy and the good things in life are worth working for.

I sometimes wonder how other see the world, to not be as simultaneously elated and saddened as I am they must see it differently. Please, dear reader, tell me what things you think about when you think of the world and what they make you feel. I think about children starving and dying of aids, I think of dictators killing innocent civilians, I think of oppression or women and the LGBT community and of minority ethnic and religious groups, I think of the American government dropping bombs and firing guns at civilians in Iraq, I think of a man who told the world what they deserved to know about the American government being left to rote in a embassy abroad while his own government won't help him and another being sentenced to 35 years in prison, I think of countries using chemical weapons on their own people and it fills my chest with an indescribable pain. I also think of people fighting for what they believe in, countries declaring marriage equality, people helping strangers on the bus or in the street, people doing research to cure cancer and aids, people donating their time and money to charity causes, people dropping their lives to volunteer in developing countries, people saying no to products made in sweat shops, people bonding over music, art and culture, i think of people falling in love and getting married and making families, I think of people asking how your day has been and learning foreign languages so they can communicate with more people. That's what we have to remember, for all the bad there is in the world there is some good and for all the bad there are people fighting against it to overcome it.

I know what it is that I want to do with this short life I've been given, and I'm slowly working out how I can do it. It's moments like now that I know what will give me the ability to make my dreams come true, the one trait I share with all those amazing people. Passion. I can't handle the thought of not making the difference that I want to make. My biggest fear is standing by and writing news stories about roadworks while I watch the world deteriorate. I am only 19 but I feel such a responsibility to do something that will make something better for someone. I will dedicate my life to that. I'm only just beginning to figure out where to start but once I get started there will be no stopping me.