We belong to each other.

As I walked home from class the other day, I passed a group of students shouting and chanting their support for the Libyan revolutionaries. I was not expecting to spend the rest of my 20 minute walk choking back tears, but I was so overwhelmed by these students' compassion for their struggling fellow humans- people they have probably never met, and might never meet! It was a ray of hope that whispered to me that this era is one of transformation. In this age of information overload, we can no longer ignore those in another continent, with another religion or of another race. We are no longer isolated and our globe is reeling with this new development. It allows us to show support for our fellow humans, to share ideas through translation mediums, and to understand from a layman's perspective other cultural enigmas. We are at a point where some cling to old-fashioned prejudices and fears, before tumbling into the new realm of equality. We can no longer claim ignorance, but must justify our selfish reactions to strange things. Our forum for discussion has exploded through sites like Twitter and Facebook, and we must now approach each other as a collective group, no longer as individuals.

The truth is that we all get afraid, we all have a favorite food, we have to have someone or something we can trust to feel secure, we bleed, we cry, we are inspired, we sing, and we dream.

We are not so different, you and I. Maybe I like the White Stripes and you think they're too loud and obnoxious. But underneath all of our trivial differences, we have a commonality that links us together: we are all bound to the same sphere of matter by a force stronger than ourselves, and we depend on many things to survive. Including each other.

The Dalai Lama once said, "All People and things are interdependent. The world has become so small that no nation can solve its problems alone, in isolation from others. That is why I believe we must all cultivate a sense of responsibility based on love and compassion for each other.”

Once we truly understand this, we will finally have peace. There are problems bigger than our difference of opinion, or who has money and land. Our world is falling apart because of these things, and we must use this as our common cause to fight together for.