You and Our
\nAnd the Magical Arithmetic
\nOf Hope
\nBy
\nJoseph Anthony<\/p>\n
You and Our<\/p>\n
And the Magical Arithmetic<\/p>\n
of Hope<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In the shared space pain takes up,
\nCamaraderie prevails.
\nAnd it isn\u2019t so much
\nThat the pain doesn\u2019t matter,
\nThose partaking of this bitter bread
\nGive thanks for the nourishment it brings.
\nAnd even as they accept me
\nInto this holy fraternity,
\nThis circle of understanding,
\nThis affiliation of grace,
\nI stand myself apart and say: Your
\nRooms, your fellowship,
\nMy pain, your pain.
\nOne of them brought this
\nTo my attention and I am grateful.
\nSo much depends upon unity,
\nUpon the shared understanding
\nThat weaves through and through
\nEach agent of mercy, each emissary that carries
\nThe gifts of sadness and transcendence.
\nAnd so I stand and take fledging steps
\nTo the edge and then into
\nThe Community of Our:
\nOur pain. Our rooms. Our healing.
\nAnd as I take my place amidst and among,
\nI sit neither below nor above,
\nI am simply one of the many,
\nOne of a band that grows, like
\nRipples in a pond,
\nLike the fragrance of honeysuckle in spring,
\nLike the good thoughts of forgiveness
\nAnd humility, like a song sung by the One
\nWho is the Ultimate Our and You and I
\nAnd We and Every Living Thing,
\nAnd on we go,
\nOne tapestry of hope,
\nOne table of plenty shared,
\nOne perpetual thanksgiving
\nOf you becoming our
\nAnd our becoming more
\nThan the sum of its parts,
\nAnd the sum of its parts
\nBecoming the magical arithmetic
\nOf hope: things subtracted
\nBecome the variables that give way
\nTo the addition of constants
\nLike love, understanding, acceptance, humor,
\nAnd miracles, yes, miracles
\nAre a constant,
\nThat when combined
\nMultiply a thousand fold, pressed down, shaken together,
\nAnd running over into a joy that equals
\nThe priceless gift
\nOf serenity.<\/p>\n