Wednesday night. I'm feeling good, tired.

My experience today brings to mind this quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. like a hot strong wind across the face:

"The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely increases hate. So it goes. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.... The chain reaction of evil — hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars — must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation." ---Strength to Love, 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr.


My own prayer for the day and the night and tomorrow approaching with its promise:

come morning
may we explore
the strangeness
the freedom
of loving through the day
breaking open the stones
the heaven of a smile
the key to the kingdom
a fragile shaking little love