non-violence

the nation's capital is hot and humid..
92 degrees and climbing..

to help the dalai lama
celebrate his 76th birthday,
the retired archbishop of cape towne..
~ desmond tutu
was on video..encouraging his holiness
to come sit on his front porch in south africa,
drink rooibos tea and reflect on the spirit of things...

martin luther king's son..
~ martin luther king III
shared remembrances from his mother
about the nobel prize of peace winner's
common ground with her husband..

mohandas gandhi's grandson..
~ arun gandhi
spoke about the genealogy of violence..
the family tree of violence..
the two children..
passive and physical..
we must pay as close attention
to passive violence as we do to war, rape, beatings..
... judgements, insults, gossip, bullying...
be the change we wish to see
offering that pledge to the dalai lama..

in the early evening, charlotte ann..
(yet another precious charlotte!)
and i wandered in the direction
of the washington monument..
the vietnam war memorial..
where ron hamilton,
the young man who walked with charlotte
at her graduation, is remembered..
the korean war memorial..

war will exist until that distant day when
the conscientious objector enjoys
the same reputation and prestige
that the warrior does today.
~ john f. kennedy

climbing the mighty steps
to the mighty lincoln memorial..
we were awed, inspired and wet..
inside and out ..rinsed clean..

the cab drivers are fantastic..
from pakistan, north carolina, ethiopia..
familiar faces of humankind
oooh! i like that word..
humankind..lovingkind