On the morning of April 20, 1999, I found myself lying among hundreds of students on the cold cafeteria floor at Columbine High School. The chaos that ensued that day has changed my life forever.

The images of this week’s Virginia Tech tragedy bring back many emotions, and I have been reminded of the importance of sharing the message of Columbine—hope. Being a survivor of the Columbine tragedy, hope is what I found.

At the time of the tragedy, I was working with a youth services organization called Young Life. My job was designed around showing up in the lives of teenagers and providing them with a mentoring adult relationship.

I believe that change begins with hope. One word can change a life; one small act of kindness can penetrate a soul. I have had the unique opportunity to share my story across the country with educators, non-profit organizations, companies, universities, as well as elected officials. Instead of seeking to find the answer to “why” someone could engage in such horror, I have found a different message in the face of tragedy.

Each year, between 12 and 20 students are needlessly killed on American campuses. Although violent crime at schools has decreased by 50 percent in the last decade, more students seem to be carrying weapons to school.

Some scholars suggest that the current generation of teenagers feel abandoned and subsequently feel hopeless. As a result, teenagers have created an underworld. Although they participate in the social structure of sports, youth groups and other group activities, they are increasingly drawn to this underworld in search of acceptance, hope and love.

In too many instances, they have not found this hope, and people without hope perish.

Inevitably, most individuals I meet graciously inquire about the lessons I learned during my time at Columbine. Every lesson is anchored in hope. People want hope and we have never yearned for it more than today.

We long for hope and are drawn to it when we see it. Hope begins when we see people as well as ourselves as an unfinished destiny. It is the idea that the last line of our book is never written.

It is easy to underestimate our ability to create positive ripples of change in our community. I’ve noticed most people approach leadership like a movie. We often come in towards the end of the picture when individuals are already leading at their peak.

Many leaders, such as Mother Teresa, Abraham Lincoln and Rosa Parks, experienced pain and failure. Lincoln’s wife struggled with mental illness; he lost a child and five elections before leading the country through the Civil War as president.

Beethoven was told, “As a composer, you are hopeless.”

Sometimes the brightest diamonds grow in the darkest caves. Storms wash away dirt, and when dirt is washed away, treasure is exposed. Your life has profound meaning, and your story has value. Ninety-five percent of life is about showing up.

The Columbine tragedy — and now the Virginia Tech tragedy — illustrates the value of a courageous human life.

One Columbine student, in the middle of rapid gunfire, held the door open for his peers as an escape route from the cafeteria. Another student brilliantly cared for a fallen teacher who had been shot. When it became apparent the teacher was not going to make it, this student showed the teacher his wallet so he could see his family one last time. He told the student, “please tell my wife I love her.”

When the gunmen stormed into the library, spouting racial slurs, a football player, along with a few others, jumped on an African American student to protect him. Teenagers were transformed into courageous servant leaders.

I recently read “Walden” by Henry David Thoreau. He brilliantly states, “We as children have the chance to begin the world again.”

During the storms of life, know the page will turn and a new chapter will unfold. In this new chapter let us approach people as an unfinished destiny through the loving eyes of children.

Our new chapter must begin with hope. In 1960, an American president asked the question, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”

Each generation must respond. I believe our generation must answer that challenge with the commitment to spread hope to the dark corners of our culture. Let us not allow a culture of fear to permeate our lives, but together, let us create a culture of hope.

Change begins with hope. Hope begins with you.