Day of Silence

Friday was the National Day of Silence, and this is the second year Heidi has been the leader in coordinating its observance at her school. However, this year they celebrated today instead of Friday so that the event’s significance wouldn’t get lost in the hubbub of Spirit Week. If you’re not familiar with Day of Silence, here is what participant badges said:

“Please understand my reasons for not speaking today. I am participating in the Day of Silence, a national youth movement bringing attention to the silence faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their allies. My deliberate silence echoes that silence, which is caused by anti-LGBT bullying, name-calling and harassment. I believe that ending the silence is the first step toward building awareness and making a commitment to address these injustices. Think about the voices you are not hearing today. What are you going to do to end the silence?”

Last year, I promised myself that I would not let another Day of Silence pass without making my own contribution…without in some way helping Heidi share the message. I admire Heidi for challenging cultural paradigms on this issue and encouraging people to love not judge, for her willingness to speak up when people say “that’s so gay” and help them realize that they are stereotyping and insulting many loving, courageous people, whose desires and motives are really no different from yours or mine.

Heidi has a t-shirt that says “Love knows no gender.” I like to remind myself that God causes love—that He is the only source of the love and affection in our relationships with others. Perhaps someday, if we all spend a little more time seeing and appreciating God in every expression of tenderness and kindness rather than trying to categorize affection, then Day of Silence will become unnecessary.

Thank you, Heidi, for repeatedly reminding me to think beyond my own little world with my prayers and actions. You are making a difference!