Imagine this. You walk out your front door one day and discover a dead body on your path. What words might adequately describe your feelings? The next day there is another body on your path. This continues day after day after day. One day you barely even notice, you’ve become desensitized. These scenes are now normal, expected, accepted.

Imagine this. You’re five years old, coming to school for the first time, full of excitement, enthusiasm, open to new friends, learning, discovery. It’s fun, you enjoy it all. Your learning includes the expected code of behavior, things like sitting still, waiting your turn, coloring within the lines. You’re on your way to becoming a model citizen with your feet on the ground and your head out of the clouds.

Imagine this. You’ve just graduated from high school, ready to go out into the world and make your own way. Something stops you on your way out the door, a feeling within your gut. You hesitate, then turn to look back behind you. The sight of dead bodies littering the hallways is staggering. You recognize them, every one. They were your hopes and dreams. They are the necessary casualties on the war against freedom and individual expression. Their sacrifice was imperative.

Imagine this. You wake up one day with an overwhelming joy and happiness bubbling up within you. You look back behind you and see all those bodies sitting up, smiling. They were just sleeping. A great noise causes you to turn and look ahead. Stretching far into the distance a crowd cheers and calls you forward.

Imagine this. You are full of promise and potential, with unique contributions that only you can make. Your hopes and dreams cannot be killed. You can walk over them or around them for the sake of expediency, but they will remain on your path. Behind you, before you, does it really matter? They are yours. They are you. Do you see them? Or have you become desensitized?