It is good, in these mean times, to

It is good, in these mean times, to

Notice beauty,

Savor kindness,

and open the soul to what is clear, pure, radiant, and

Wise.

For ignorance, arrogance, petulance, and violence are

Corrosive and

Contagious, unless

We fortify and resist

With intentional turnings of the heart

Toward what is humble, virtuous, and genuine

With innocence beyond naivete:

Like that mountain in the orange glow of sunset,

That day when we roamed free,

Or that moon, perfect behind a veil of thin clouds, as

We took a night walk and spoke freely,

Or the daily encore of gentle dawn light,

Or the bursting forth of that spring by the roadside with

Water clear beyond clear,

Or even in these clear tears shed by mourners with hearts broken open, after the latest

Atrocity about which the powerful will blaspheme with

Murky promises of “thoughts and prayers” (and nothing more).

A tornado of fecality rages, beloved, so do not miss

The holiness of beauty

Whenever is appears, for in these mean times,

One can forget to breathe,

And push,

And see.