'Tis good to celebrate in the Silence those
Moments of gratitude for the friends who have
walked with me ...
There is always a return gift waiting in my heart.
It is for those who took off their shoes
to be reverent with my coming,
For those who stood on tiptoes beside me
when my hope was small.
It is for those who were present
when I needed my feet washed.
It is for those who raced with me to the tomb
on the day I was certain it held
nothing but death.
It is for those who celebrated my emptiness
with me and
For those who broke with me the kind of bread
that fed my death new life.
Out of the silence came a vision:
"I have seen a land shining with goodness where each person protects another's dignity as readily as their own, where war and want have ceased and all races live under the same law of love and honor. I have seen a land bright with truth where leaders extend their hands in justice rather than turning to arms, where mercy, kindness and compassion flow like deep water over the land and virtue, truth, and beauty are revered above comfort, pleasure or selfish gain ... a land where peace reigns in every heart, where faith blazes like a beacon from every hill and love like a fire from every hearth. I have seen this land and my heart yearns for it."