Yin and Yang-2024 July

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Yin and Yang (2024 July)
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The predator attacks the prey,
The parasite, the host—
And sea and land and air in turn
Convulse and take their tolls.
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We humans feast on plants and beasts
And torture both of these.
The facts of life on Planet Earth
Were not designed to please.
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****** 
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And yet, there still is happiness
And pleasure mixed with pain,
And moments, both, of utter grief
And purest joy and bliss.
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So smiles and laughter alternate
With worries, frowns and tears;
So hunger stokes the appetite,
As distance strengthens bonds.
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******
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So sorrows deepen shallow minds, 
And pleasures lull awareness. 
Yet age may not let wisdom in,
And tyrants live the longest.
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We turn from things unpleasant, so
This lets those fester more.
There’s good and bad in all of us.
Cartoons precede the gore.
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****** 
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And yet there still are thoughtful men
And women in the world,
And children try to comfort those
That they perceive as hurt.
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And parents labor hard to feed
And rear their little broods,
And some who're aged or ailing still
Are cared for in their turns. 
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******
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The greens of trees appear serene;
The blues of skies delight.
The yellow blooms that dance in winds
Can turn our moods to bright.
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And see, amidst the massacres
And cruelties and woes,
The light of caring still persists
As courage fights its foes.
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****** 
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The yang within the yin—and deep
Within the yin, the yang.
So good and evil intertwine,
As light and darkness do.
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We can choose to turn to darkness
And to speed the spread of hate—
Or turn towards the light, before 
That turning comes too late.
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2024 July 17th, Wed.
Berkeley, California
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