INSPIRATION .

“The sky shatters. It is not what we wanted to shatter. It is not the victory cry that we wished for. The shards that come scattering down do not scintillate in the sunlight but leave us bleeding on their jagged edges. The wall goes up. It is not a wall we wanted to build. It is not the promise we wanted to make. The lines in the sand are not erased away as we had hoped, but get carved and hardened into cement. But skies have shattered before, and been pieced back together again. Walls have gone up before, and been torn back down again. And beneath the shattered ceiling of the sky, and within the boundaries of the wall, there is something gentle and precious and tender that is always beating on and on and on. And we will stand with our lips held firm in a smile and our bodies poised high on our toes, and our fists clenched tight and ready and greet the sunlight when it comes.”

“‘What do you think the stars wish for then?’ ‘A softer beginning.’”