Dear Friends~
I wrote the poem below as I was solidifying my commitment to participate in Democracy Spring, a non-partisan campaign of mass civil disobedience in the Capitol to protest the influence of big money in U.S. politics.
Democracy Spring
Every day I wake I want to know
is this the day, is this the day democracy
blossoms? Is this when the earth resounds
through the voice of the people and
everyone comes to her breast?
This closed fist in the darkness,
this tight throat we have known
is not all there is—I know
the pulse of a living thing, I can feel
a season turning in my bones.
Every morning I rise to meet the sunlight
as it rallies us, every hour I ask
how shall I grow from this my soil,
what yellows, what purples murmur,
what sap flows, what flames
will rise to meet the others
in the garden, in the forest
where we now live? Oh, people,
is there anything else to want,
any other desire to consume us
than this longing to lift and find
ourselves in the daylight waving
our victory flags, singing triumph songs?
Every day I wake I want to know
is this the day, is this the day
democracy blossoms?
Is this where democracy springs?
–Susan Windle
March, 2016
Susan Windle speaks her poem at Democracy Spring Rally, April, 2016. Photo by Jane Hulting.
I have pledged with thousands of others to risk arrest in organized sit-ins at the Capitol Building during the week of April 11-April 18, 2016. On Tuesday, April 12, I will be rallying and sitting in with a cohort of Elder Activists. Leading up to the rallies and civil disobedience, hundreds of activists will be marching from Philadelphia to Washington DC, April 2-April 11.
I am convinced that wresting our democracy from the control of the enormously wealthy is the core issue of our national political struggle. How can we be a democracy when the voices of the people are muffled beneath the voices of the powerful few? How can we advance the programs and protections that the majority of our citizens want and need—for ourselves and for one another— when the system is so heavily weighted against us? How can we challenge the injustices we know must be challenged, when our politicians can be bought by corporations? True democracy, I believe, is essential to building a more just and sustainable society. I see no other way to get there.
If you are called to support Democracy Spring, here are some ways you can help, take a look at the website for full descriptions of the March and Actions in DC. If you’d like to stand with the Elder Activists, you will find a a link to sign up for that day. Or you may decide to participate in one or more of the other days. If you’d like to be part of Elder Activists, let me know, and I will get you in on the listserve and organizing conference calls. Your prayers, your thoughts, your chants and meditations for the campaign and for our precious democracy, are vital. Keep them coming, please.
I don’t know how the story of democracy in these United States will play out, but I do believe ultimately democracy will win in this world—I see us waving those victory flags and singing triumph songs. Soon, I pray, soon.
Blessings~
Susan
Dear Friends~
I wrote the poem below as I was solidifying my commitment to participate in Democracy Spring, a non-partisan campaign of mass civil disobedience in the Capitol to protest the influence of big money in U.S. politics.
Democracy Spring
Every day I wake I want to know
is this the day, is this the day democracy
blossoms? Is this when the earth resounds
through the voice of the people and
everyone comes to her breast?
This closed fist in the darkness,
this tight throat we have known
is not all there is—I know
the pulse of a living thing, I can feel
a season turning in my bones.
Every morning I rise to meet the sunlight
as it rallies us, every hour I ask
how shall I grow from this my soil,
what yellows, what purples murmur,
what sap flows, what flames
will rise to meet the others
in the garden, in the forest
where we now live? Oh, people,
is there anything else to want,
any other desire to consume us
than this longing to lift and find
ourselves in the daylight waving
our victory flags, singing triumph songs?
Every day I wake I want to know
is this the day, is this the day
democracy blossoms?
Is this where democracy springs?
–Susan Windle
March, 2016
Susan Windle speaks her poem at Democracy Spring Rally, April, 2016. Photo by Jane Hulting.
I have pledged with thousands of others to risk arrest in organized sit-ins at the Capitol Building during the week of April 11-April 18, 2016. On Tuesday, April 12, I will be rallying and sitting in with a cohort of Elder Activists. Leading up to the rallies and civil disobedience, hundreds of activists will be marching from Philadelphia to Washington DC, April 2-April 11.
I am convinced that wresting our democracy from the control of the enormously wealthy is the core issue of our national political struggle. How can we be a democracy when the voices of the people are muffled beneath the voices of the powerful few? How can we advance the programs and protections that the majority of our citizens want and need—for ourselves and for one another— when the system is so heavily weighted against us? How can we challenge the injustices we know must be challenged, when our politicians can be bought by corporations? True democracy, I believe, is essential to building a more just and sustainable society. I see no other way to get there.
If you are called to support Democracy Spring, here are some ways you can help, take a look at the website for full descriptions of the March and Actions in DC. If you’d like to stand with the Elder Activists, you will find a a link to sign up for that day. Or you may decide to participate in one or more of the other days. If you’d like to be part of Elder Activists, let me know, and I will get you in on the listserve and organizing conference calls. Your prayers, your thoughts, your chants and meditations for the campaign and for our precious democracy, are vital. Keep them coming, please.
I don’t know how the story of democracy in these United States will play out, but I do believe ultimately democracy will win in this world—I see us waving those victory flags and singing triumph songs. Soon, I pray, soon.
Blessings~
Susan
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