At the very least, we can love each other much better

That ought to be the bare minimum asked of us for the life we have been given.

Loving each other means everyone has enough food. Each of us is responsible for that.

Loving each other means everyone is safe each day. Each of us are responsible for that, too.

If there is a neighborhood in your town or region that you do not consider to be safe, it is your responsibility to make it safe. It does not matter where you live in proximity to that neighborhood. If you know that a neighborhood in your region is unsafe – meaning that any children who live there are not safe and any adults who live there are also not safe – what are you doing about it?

Loving each other means that if we know schools are struggling to prepare our children - quick research will show you that a disproportionate number of schools located in low-income communities have a majority of their kids reading well below grade level - we dedicate our funds to that instead of a project that benefits those who are not in an emergency. That is simple crisis management, and the fate of children in low-income communities is undoubtedly a crisis.

And suppose your love for your fellow human beings allows you to research drop-out rates for schools in your town. In that case, you may see that schools serving children in low-income communities have graduation rates below 50%, while schools serving children in middle- and upper-income communities are over 90%.

What happens to those kids who do not graduate? Thinking earlier in the process, how did they keep passing when they could not read? And who wants to stay in a place where you’re told every day that you’re stupid?

Education is one more area where we dip our toes to help instead of diving all the way in.

Are you ready to dive in? Do you have that much love?

Loving each other means taking action to end poverty instead of talking about whether or not it is possible to do so. This plan can help.

Loving each other means being fully human. It is not something to talk about. It is something to do.