“Every Now and Then”
Every now and then, a sunflower
Struggles up out of a sea of
Choking weeds and finds the light.
Every so often, in the midst of a
Summer drought, a thundering
Storm rolls in and drenches the earth.
Sometimes
The investment banker decides
Not to foreclose on a mortgage of a
Family racked with medical expenses
The oil executive refrains from destructive drilling,
The developer resists Bull-dozing the oak savanna,
The general refuses to rush to war,
And the politician chooses integrity Over party loyalty.
And sometimes each of us have second thoughts.
Our hearts become open and we are
able to
Listen to the story of someone we
dislike
Or reach out to a person very
different from ourselves.
It is then that we find the common
bond which
Unites our humanity.
Every once in a while, friends make-up
After a quarrel, forgive each
Other and embrace even more
Tenderly than before.
Every now and then Loving Kindness triumphs,
And begins to heal the brokenness of the world.
Vincent Kavaloski, Ph.D., lived for 37 years in these Uplands in an intentional, eco-community devoted to peace and harmony with people and the land. He is currently concluding a long academic calling at Edgewood College and looking forward to being a freelance philosopher. He can be reached at vincekavaloski@gmail.com. Mary Friedel-Hunt’s “Living Well, Dying Well” column will return next month.