autumnal equinox 2000
"There is a pervasive form of contemporary violence to which the idealist . . . most easily succumbs: activism and over-work . . . To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many people, to want to help everyone in everything, is to succumb to violence. The frenzy of the activist neutralizes his work for peace. It destroys the fruitfulness of his own work, because it kills the root of inner wisdom which makes work fruitful."
-Thomas Merton
these words appeared in my mailbox on the 55th anniversary of my soul's emergence into this life. i am in a quiet wood on the coast of maine. my heart hears the truth in them. i pray for the strength to heed their message - to sever myself from the violence - and seek within for the balance i see in the surrounding woods and sea.
--mosa