Choose Love Over Labels

When my son was born with Down syndrome, the world rushed to label him. The doctors used clinical terms. The internet gave me statistics. And strangers, without meaning harm, offered sympathy laced with assumptions.

But I wasn’t looking for a label.I was looking for love.For hope.For something that would tell me, “He is going to be just fine—and so are you.”

Labels can be useful in some ways—they help explain a diagnosis, they guide support systems, they even give structure to care. But when labels become the lens through which we see a person, they limit us. They tell half-truths. And too often, they silence the full, beautiful story of who someone really is.

Because Colton is not a diagnosis.He’s not “a Down syndrome kid.”He’s my child.He’s a brother, a music lover, a light in every room.He is silly, smart, stubborn, sweet—and he is his own person.

Choosing love over labels means we stop defining people by their challenges, and start celebrating them for their humanity. It means asking, “What brings you joy?” instead of “What can you not do?” It means inviting everyone to the table—not as an act of charity, but of respect.

It also means standing up and speaking out—correcting outdated language, advocating for inclusive spaces, and modeling empathy for the next generation. It means we say “a child with Down syndrome,” not “a Down syndrome child,” because words matter. They shape how we think—and how others are treated.

When we choose love, we create room for possibility.When we choose love, we challenge the world to see more, not less.When we choose love, we change everything.

So today, and every day, I invite you to look past the label.See the whole person.Lead with your heart.

And choose love—always.

#ChooseLoveOverLabels #DownSyndromeAwareness #SpecialMiracles