H
ello! It is snowing quite heavily here in the Midwest as I write this to you the morning after Super-Duper Tuesday. The trees outside my window are sagging with the weight of the wet snow...
As you know, I like to share poems that help restore the spirit for people who are doing the difficult work in the nonprofit sector. Here is a favorite writing that was given to me by a former board chair when I left a leadership position. I hope it brings you the same joy as it has brought me.
George Bernard Shaw - One True Joy in Life (partly from the Dedicatory Letter, in Man and Superman)
This is the one true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one;
the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish clod of ailments and grievances,
complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy.
I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live it is my privilege
to do for it whatever I can.
I want to be thoroughly used up when I die. For the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life
for its own sake.
Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I've got hold of for the moment and I
want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to the future generations.
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If you have a favorite poem that you have "leaned on" during difficult
times, please e-mail it to me and I will post it on my blog. - Jean
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