The present is no respecter of consistency.

Martha spent four months last winter cooking three meals a day, day in and day out, for hundreds of volunteers who had come to help the people of New Orleans recover from the one-two punch of Hurricane Katrina and FEMA. On the one year anniversary of this ongoing nightmare, President Bush appears with his sleeves rolled up and says, "And so I come back to say that we will stand with the people of southern Louisiana and southern Mississippi until the job is done."

So who do YOU trust to keep their word, Martha or George W?

There's nothing shy about a hibiscus. Hey, baby, if you've got it, flaunt it!

Gandhi teaches that when we practice nonviolence, the moth is as worthy a recipient as our human sisters and brothers. There is no hierarchy and no exceptions.

There comes a time when we must stand alone for that which we believe. When that time comes, we must be certain we are standing for the greater good rather than for our own personal agenda. And how do we determine our true motivation? By seeing as best we can what will be the consequences of our actions.

May we never forget to acknowledge with gratitude earth's abundant gifts.

When times get tough, there's something comforting about a screened-in porch. Can't you hear the cicadas and taste the iced tea flavored with a sprig of mint?

Nations, like plants and people, go through an evolutionary process. The problems come when the youngest and least mature find themselves in positions of power.

Even a giant pine starts small. That's why we mustn't give up on the possibility of peace when all we see are tiny glimmerings of hope.

A lacy leaf like a wrinkled face merely shows signs of a life fully lived.

The beat of a drum reminds us of the first sounds we ever heard--our mother's heartbeat. How cunning to use it as a call to war.

The moon can make even a whiskey factory look beautiful.

Doesn't it make more sense to dance our differences rather than fight them?

We cannot always soar. Sometimes we must rest.

Earth, air, fire and water...

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we humans dared to be as outrageously ourselves as the flowers in our gardens?

As sweet as pink clouds at sunset is hearing the voices of those you love, especially after their escape from a war zone to safety.

Over 1000 Lebanese civilians have been killed in the past month, one third of them children under the age of 12. And America continues to send the Israeli military all the bombs they want. What have we become?

I'm sure this south Beirut neighborhood no longer exists. Yet when we dropped Sana off to visit her girlfriend that Saturday afternoon nine months ago, the streets were crowded with cars and people. Where are they now? Are they still alive?

This is the reality of war.

Any ceasefire may be fragile as a blossom opening to the sun, yet those who thwart attempts to impose its lifesaving potential bring death to others.

Read a line of poetry for every headline.

Being a peacemaker does not mean we take both sides, but that we remain nonviolent and open to dialogue even as we stand firm in what we believe is best for all.

When healing is needed, flowers can be the best medicine.

The kind of love that meets hatred without flinching is not what is found on Hallmark cards. No, it is found in interrogation rooms in US prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan, in Hitler's concentration camps, in torture chambers around the world, on the streets where people like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. meet beatings, hoses, dogs and death. This kind of love is fierce and terrible in its beauty. It is what will save the world.

The power of hatred is very strong, but it is no match for the power of love.

In the middle of a hot summer it takes imagination to remember when ice and snow were all we saw. So why don't we realize it takes imagination to believe in the possibility of peace in the midst of wars? As John Lennon said, "Imagine..."

I can think of nothing more hopeful than meeting youngsters who take the time to examine complex issues, ask hard questions of their elders, listen carefully to the answers, then put things together for themselves.

Isn't it time for us to turn over a new leaf and give up on war?

Twenty-four days ago the Lebanese were so proud of this, the largest bridge in the Middle East. And now? A pile of rubble.

When will we ever learn?

Everything we do impacts the whole.

If our present is not the past we want to leave to our children and grandchildren, it's up to us to change it.