It's bitterly cold here and
the wind blows right through every layer of clothing I
have on.
I read at the National
Day of Poets Against the War
event at The White Whale in Beverly tonight: my
guns and
butter poem and Tu Fu's
Ballad of the Army Carts. There were about 35
people there. Not bad for a really cold winter night.
I was frozen solid from the wind. I
knew not a soul in the room. I felt like I had
to be there. I had to do something.
I had a good talk with the head of
the local chapter of Veterans
for Peace before the
reading about one of their projects working with kids in
the schools. He read some poems written by 4th graders in
the Peace Poetry project.
My commitment to nonviolence is
tested every day in lots of ways. I want so badly to
believe that the universe is on the side of justice, that
peace is possible. That's a hard ideal to hold onto in
these times.
It's not enough to say I want
peace. I have to be peace with every fiber of my
being.
At the very least my reading
tonight helped me renew my commitment to compassion for
all beings and to live nonviolence in my life to the best
of my ability.
