The Courage to Love
“If one has courage, nothing can dim the light that shines from within.”
–Maya Angelou
By now many of you will have heard the story of Confections Bakery in a small East Texas town. An innocent post to social media of their rainbow iced cookies with the heading “More LOVE, Less Hate” in honor of Pride Month quickly led to cancelled orders, unfriending on social media and hate messages.
In the bubble I live and work in here in Austin, I often forget that there are people still so frightened by people loving people in ways unimaginable to them that they lash out in hate.
In reading about the initial reaction to Confections Bakery and the ultimate triumph of love and support beyond their imagining, I was reminded that courage is sadly still needed to support love in all its variations.
Reporter Cat Cardenas shared in Texas Monthly’s article about what happened: “In a screenshot posted to the shop’s Instagram story, one woman wrote, ‘I just wanted you to know that baking rainbow Pride cookies is an act of courage and love,’ signing off ‘Lesbian, grandmother, & cookie-lover.'”
Of course “More LOVE, Less Hate” also applies to how we respond to those with a different point of view. Sometimes confrontation is unavoidable when lives or livelihoods are threatened, but overwhelming an East Texas town with loving support for their bakery rather than challenging critics can touch lives and open hearts beyond anyone’s imagining.
May you find the courage to be more kind, loving, and open to those different from you. And may you remember the gift of all the colors of the spectrum of light coming together – while maintaining their individual brilliance – to create something beautiful beyond measure.
