By Robert (Dusty) Staub
Dedicated to Erik
You do not have to like your life to find your way to love.
You do not need anything more in order to be free.
Sometimes, it is when you are in the deepest pain
That a kind word, a loving glance, a gentle touch
Will serve to crack the shell around your heart
And, a green shoot of forgiveness simply pushes through.
You do not have to like your life to find your way to love.
You do not need anything more in order to be free.
Sometimes, it is when you are most alone
And feeling lost within your self
That your solitude can take you in its arms
Offering the balm of a companionship you have never known.
You do not have to like your life to find your way to love.
You do not need anything more in order to be free.
Sometimes, it is in your darkest hour when you cannot see your way
That the grace of light illuminates one searing scene of possibility,
Like that of a child laughing and at play, or
The vibrant heart of a common field daisy.
And then, in that moment, the earth catches it breath,
As who you are yet to be, reaches back and down
And who you are, reaches up and out
To join hands in gratitude and grace,
And you are drawn forth from the darkness,
Like Lazarus rising from the grave.
You do not have to like your life to find your way to love.
You do not need anything more in order to be free.