Be the light

Amanda Gorman begins her poem for the Inauguration of our new President and Vice-President, "When day comes we ask ourselves,
where can we find light in this never-ending shade?" 

She performed her poem with elegant gestures of hand, tilt of head, glitter of sunlight on her face. I couldn't hear the words because I was all taken up in looking, looking, looking at the wonder that she is. Later, when the transcript of her poem was posted, I read, 

"We lay down our arms
so we can reach out our arms
to one another
We seek harm to none and harmony for all"

I hope that is what we seek. Now that the degradation, the vile repulsive bloated greed and ego-mania have left the building, now that we hear words that inspire instead of words that nauseate, I hope we will see action that suits the words, policies that result in harm to none and harmony for all. I don't think we know what "harmony for all" looks like. We've never seen it. We don't know if it is possible. But we can hope.

We can give ourselves this day to hope, to be relieved, to cry, to sob with the emotion we have had to contain for the last four years. I was more moved than I expected to be, despite the display of arms and military power. Tomorrow we can return to the steady work of dismantling the systems that sustain white supremacy, fascism, capitalism and income inequality. 

She ends, "When day comes we step out of the shade,
aflame and unafraid
The new dawn blooms as we free it
For there is always light,
if only we’re brave enough to see it
If only we’re brave enough to be it." 

Be the light.