May the Divine who blessed the old ones
with the courage to face their fears
and to be anointed by their stinging, streaming tears,
with the strength to bridge gaps, reach mountaintops and tumble walls,
with the power to get up again and again after so many falls,
with the determination to work to better their communities,
with the wisdom and compassion to toil for unity,
with the persistence to stay alive and strive and fully thrive,
with the daring to uproot and move to improve their families’ Lives,
with the Love to rise above and the grief to dig down deep,
with the bravery and stamina to take to the streets,
to gather signatures, donate, volunteer and phone bank,
to vote, talk to representatives, stand in front of moving tanks,
to Love the haters, to lay their very Lives on the line,
to mend the world for themselves, for your Life and for mine;
May the Divine who blessed the old ones with all of these traits,
who blesses us with these blessings now to be the authors of our own fates;
May the Divine who will bless the ones-yet-to-be
bless us at this moment in the “Land of the Free”
with all of the blessings that we need to heal
all of the injustices in this nation that are real;
May the Divine awaken and kindle deep inside
any latent powers we have to heal these divides;
May the Divine help us to become all we can be –
a nation of true peace, social justice and equality,
where everyone who dwells here receives all that they need
to Live and Love, to grow and thrive, to achieve all their dreams,
where children are safe, nourished, cherished, can grow and learn in peace,
where immigrants are welcomed from places they need to flee,
where people of all colors, statuses, beliefs and identities
are treated equally with great respect and dignity,
where science is listened to and challenged only when necessary,
where treaties are honored and reparations are made immediately,
where we honestly confront our past and teach all who need to see
that our differences are what can make us such a great democracy,
where people are put before profits, where we listen only to truth,
where we revere our elders and indigenous ones and listen to our youths,
where we take stands for social justice here and everywhere,
where we lead by example to be compassionate, just and fair,
where we take all the necessary steps to heal our Mother Earth,
where, right now, we are blessed to midwife our country’s rebirth,
where the Divine reminds us that labor can also have great pains
Zhe tells us that we have the power to ensure that Love reigns;
May this nation and the world heal its bodies, hearts, minds and souls;
May we all know a complete healing to be truly free and whole.
