He saw her over the gulf of eternity
sitting under the great oak.
Her body swathed in pure white chiffon
and lace,
White and pure and soft.
Her legs up
her body cradled over
the box... the box of gold..
her gift.
She sat there crying,
Her sobs touching every fiber of her soul.
For inside the box, was her gift,
of love, her soul, her desire, her need.
The precious seeds of her womanhood.
With love
those seeds would grow,
venture out of the box into the sunlight,
and through their growth
fill her life with color
the beautiful perfume of flowers,
the wonder of birds and butterflies
attracted by it's beauty.
But her box was grey,
Covered with years of neglect,
the seeds resting on bone-dry soil.
Her heart in hibernation.
Her tears tracing lines down her cheek.
He watched her.
He understood.
She fell asleep.
She woke to see him there
The box cradled lovingly in his lap
Toolbox by his side.
He was a million miles away
across the great gulf
yet seemed to be right next to her.
And she watched,
as his loving hands treasured it
wiped away the years
brought back the wonder of the gold,
made all the years of neglect disappear.
Time stood still as she watched.
The gold was battered,
dented and scraped,
marks of the pain in her life.
Each mark disappeared under his loving attention,
each dent pulled out,
each scrape buffed clean.
Time, he seemed to have endless time,
as he focused his love on each flaw,
one by one,
tears in his eyes as he understood the pain each one signified,
then erasing it with his loving hands.
The gentle light from his eyes,
and the water from his tears,
nourished her seeds,
bringing life and beauty where there once was desolation.
And then he was there,
next to her.
She lost herself in his eyes
as he tenderly placed the treasure
in her hands.
"Take it forever!" she started to cry,
but a gentle touch to her lips stifled the cry in her throat.
"My love," he said,
God has placed us on opposite sides of a great gulf.
Only He can make that gulf disappear, and he will,
in His own time.
Until then, we have His work to do,
each on our own side.
When that work is done, He will look on us with favor,
for it is He who sent me to you."
He took her hands in his,
touched his lips to hers, and said,
"But this promise I make: when you need me, summon me.
I will come to your side.
And every night I shall return,
to wipe away every scratch,
fix every flaw,
that life has put on your gift of your womanhood.
I will lie with you and ease your pain.
And when the gulf is gone,
when eternity is ours,
I will place your gift in a place of honor,
So the world will see, and know
that I treasure you,
your womanhood,
your love,
your life.
They will all know that you have finally received
the love you deserve."
And he was gone.
She cried.
Then a soft voice was heard from all around her
and inside her...
"My, child. When you thought it was a man you needed
I let you choose a man.
But he took your gift, and put it on a shelf
To wither
To die.
When you thought it was a lover you needed
You chose a lover
Who simply used your gift as a stepping stool
to reach over the walls in his life which he despised.
No, it is not a man you need,
for a man cannot understand your heart.
And it is not a lover you need. A lover is like a firefly,
lighting your life for a moment,
then leaving you to deal with the darkness
Until it flashes again.
So I have taken it into my own hands
and shown you what you truly need.
He is not just a man, though a man he is.
He is not just a lover, though a lover he is.
He is the man I have given you forever..
He is your soulmate"
ON SEPT. 12, 2001, the United States received messages of support and condolence from around the globe as this nation struggled to comprehend the previous days terrorist attacks. At home, we vowed to set aside our petty differences and unite as Americans. Today I struggle to comprehend how this nation squandered the near universal good will expressed then. I wonder how the same population that vowed unity then has become so bitterly divided. The disastrously planned invasion of Iraq earned us the enmity of much of the world and has divided us at home. The war on terror has scarred this countrys human rights record. Three years ago, the world watched helplessly as an inept federal government stumbled while thousands of people struggled to survive Hurricane Katrinas wrath in New Orleans. Like an exclamation point at the end of the Bush administration, the economy now teeters on the brink of collapse. I believe this country needs healing internally to end the class and cultural warfare that has reached levels today I never thought Id see again after 9/11. The United States current international image as the worlds bully must be reformed if we hope to effect stability in regions that are now hotbeds of terrorism and nuclear adventurism. Economic recovery, as I see it, is dependent on those goals. FOR THOSE critical efforts, I believe Barack Obama is the best choice as our next president. Throughout a grueling primary campaign that began at the Old State Capitol in Springfield IL, Obama went from extreme underdog to the confident, self-assured candidate of the Democratic Party. His poise on the campaign trail since then is no surprise to me. I saw it in person four years ago when he was a candidate for the U.S. Senate. Thoughtful, engaging and intellectually nimble, Obama exuded a sense of quiet self-confidence rare among politicians. But poise and eloquence alone, as Obamas detractors have pointed out ad nauseum, dont make a president, and neither do I rely solely on those qualities in endorsing Obama. OBAMA'S ADVOCACY of diplomacy in dealing with countries that we now shun, like Iran, is a necessity in our quest to bring rogue nations into the global community. I believe an Obama administration, which would represent a complete break from Bush policies of the last eight years, would make such diplomacy not only possible, but effective. I find Obamas health-care plan, which provides incentives for employers to provide insurance and will make it more difficult for insurance companies to decline coverage based on pre-existing conditions, to be vastly superior to John McCains proposed $5,000 tax credit. While McCain has chided Obama throughout the campaign for opposing last years troop surge in Iraq, I side with Obama in noting that the Iraq war began in 2003, not 2007. Clinging to ill-defined notions of victory at this stage will only prolong what is already viewed as our occupation of Iraq. An Obama presidency would send a signal to Iraq that it is time to stop relying on America to maintain stability there. I also think Obamas personal story born to a single mother, raised by grandparents, struggling with his own identity put him in a position to be uniquely empathetic with many Americans of humble means who are now working to emulate his success story. I'D BE REMISS if I did not add here that I am profoundly disappointed in the tone McCains campaign embraced throughout this race. Hiring the very people who so thoroughly smeared him in South Carolina in 2000 did not serve McCain well. While sounding a call of bipartisan unity, McCains actions did otherwise, painting his opponent as an exotic and unknown figure to be feared and mistrusted. His selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate was an insult to those who looked to McCain to restore strength and stability to the Republican party. Those, however, are not the reasons for my endorsement of Obama. This country needs a president who can restore its vigor at home and revive its image abroad. Barack Obama should be that president. Cindy