Remembering that we all hold them
helps us find compassion for those
we imagine are not like us at all,

when, of course, we are far more
similar than different, all beings
wanting to be happy, the reminder

to release judgments, see the spark
of grace in us all, we who are one,
behold with awe the divine connections

we all share.

•••

(for Margery Thompson and her great, compassionate heart,
on her birthday… and for her brother Dick Schmidt on his
half-birthday, too, with love and gratitude)