Because we all share
this planet earth,
we have to learn to live
in harmony and peace
with each other and with nature.
This is not just a dream,
but a necessity.
~ His Holiness the Dalai Lama
OF MERE BEING
The palm at the end of the mind,
Beyond the last thought, rises
In the bronze distance.
A gold-feathered bird
Sings in the palm, without human meaning,
Without human feeling, a foreign song.
You know then that it is not the reason
That makes us happy or unhappy.
The bird sings. Its feathers shine.
The palm stands on the edge of space.
The wind moves slowly in the branches.
The bird's fire-fangled feathers dangle down.
— Wallace Stevens, 1954
Poetry Garden
