
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, March 24, 1994                   TAG: 9403260008
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A13   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: VONETTIA M. WEBB
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

LIFE SUPPORT

AMERICA IS in dying need of love. Many people sing the song "America the Beautiful," but how can America be beautiful if it is so full of hatred? How can we make this world a better place for future generations if there is no love, peace or hope?

There are many places in America where disasters have occurred. There are people who need comfort and support, who have been through these life-threatening traumas. Is there anyone so cruel to say that they acted on feelings of pity, and not of compassion? Today in America, there is so much crime, pain, sickness, suffering, poverty and, most of all, hatred. America needs love! It is the only thing there is too little of.

The citizens of America can lean on their brothers and sisters when we need a helping hand instead of running to foreign countries. If the citizens of America do not show love, how can we tell others to love? In the Bible, God spoke the words "Love one another as I have loved you." If each citizen of America would abide by that phrase each day, we would not have time to fight because we would be spreading love.

Everyone, no matter what their color, race, creed, disability or religion, has had pain or sorrow in their life. We cannot help them by putting them down. Since love covers a multitude of sins, when we recycle love toward one another, we will live each day in happiness and peace. No matter who we are, we all are one in the sight of God.

We can spread our love by sharing with others who are not as fortunate. If we, the citizens of America, would show others that they can make it if they try, this would be a better world. For example: If you walk the streets of New York and see a homeless person Iying in the street, instead of sticking your nose in the air, offer a warm meal and bath. When you help someone it comes back to you some way.

I show the love I have for my community and other neighborhoods by volunteering my services. I feel that I can show other youth that young people can show an act of love. I also feel that our young people need to get involved with the community. These communities will be left in our care someday. We are the future generation. If we, the future generation, do not learn to care for the environment around us, no one else will.

Most of our young adults inherit values from their parents. If they see their parents giving and caring, they will do the same. If they are taught in their homes to be considerate of other people, to love and be loved, and to love themselves, they will be able to increase peace and spread love. On the other hand, there are many young adults who have been raised in troubled homes. They do not receive the love and comfort they need and deserve. They soon begin to feel alone and hurt, then grow up to be the exact replica of their parents. How can you love someone or yourself if you were not taught to love in the home?

A well-known symbol of love is the heart. Without the heart, a person would die. Without love, the world would die. Just as the body could not function without the heart, how could a world that is constantly engulfed in fighting and war survive?

Love is free. America should receive and give it freely.

Vonettia M. Webb, a student at Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, is a volunteer at Community Hospital of Roanoke Valley and the West End Center.

by CNB