My father is a patriotic man

A gun carrying, flag flying, free-spoken man

He always taught me to never let my colors run, to stand my ground, and to live loudly

Unconsciously, I believe he was trying to paint me with the colors of his own palette instead of letting me choose my own, as many people do in our country

Growing up I discovered many colors of the world

I experienced bright, full colors that I found myself dancing to, colors that were music to my ears

I experienced times of dark colors, monochromatic tones, deafening silences

As an artist in life, I used these colors to spread the messages that I felt needed to be heard

I painted pictures of things that I believed in and strived for

Not once have I ever painted a gun nor a flag, but I did use my colors to draw out endless injunctions of what the nation will become

What the nation is now becoming

The country that my father is so fond of because he speaks as the majority

Some people do not have the opportunity to fill their palettes, they do not have the chance to share their artwork

Even after a lifetime of pushing to create and spread the messages that are stuck in their heads, they are

Overlooked

Overanalyzed

Overturned

Their chance is not over

Let these people with limited palettes expand their education, let them widen their horizon, let them help in painting a better mural of this country

A mural with an endless variety of colors, forget the red, white, and blue

Let people paint their own flag to celebrate what this country could be

With a changing world around us, we must change, adapt, evolve; we must survive with everyone else

We must stop taking for granted the fact that so many people of the world wish to come paint with us, in America

We, as Americans, must stop crushing the brushes of others, we must stop stealing the colors and ideas of others

Sharing is a concept that we, as Americans, learn at a young age, and right now we have forgotten that concept

I will forever thank my father for teaching me to not let my colors run, and I will continue to write my messages with every color of the rainbow