Anyway!

The Radical Act of Joy

A friend sent me a recording…

Her lovely voice mixed with a poem by

Margaret Renki - “The Comfort of Crows”.

I had to stop and replay a part of it

Where she says something like

Yes, we are ruining our planet - we are

Burning the forests, the grasses we are

Blasting holes in the Mother to grab even

More of her in our greed and our stupidity, but

This poet declares her joy in

Loving the emerging beauty of Spring

Anyway!

Does what we know and

What we refuse to close our eyes against

Eclipse the animal joy in

Raising cold cheeks

streaked with tears into the

Warmth of soothing sunlight?

Does our agony in the

Wake of floods, drought and fire

Smother our need for the peace and

Beauty of walking solitary through the

Blessed forests that remain?

No.

No! Because this relief this

Delight this

Wonder is what we must

In the end

Refuse to lose.