Joy, Praise and Love by Milton Lee Norris

A poem from the "Born In The Wrong Country" by Milton Lee Norris


Praise to you for the journey that continues and for the journeys that await.

Thanks for the Blessing! When in times of sorrow one does not usually think of joy,

for that just seems so far too removed. In thinking about the slavery

that was done to you for it just didn’t happen for those were cruel acts.

Cruel things just don’t happen as one might want us to believe

for something of evil takes planning indeed. It takes a mind to be cruel

just as it takes a mind to love, there is a how to hate, but many more of how to love,

just as there are so many ways to love, there are too many ways to hate,

and that’s where cruelty comes from; it comes out of hate,

for hate is not natural as the love that we make.

For as there is that wonderful love that is supreme,

there is also that hate which is so cruel and dark.

Love is for those wonderful things for the joy that it brings

from the spirit within,

from the top of your head to the bottom of your feet

joy makes one tingle like one’s old lost friend. There is joy in the morning,

there’s joy at night, there’s joy in the afternoon,

there’s joy in the evening. There’s joy for the moon

and more for the sun, and joy for the rain that comes in early spring.

There is much joy at births and of birthdays that come,

but the joy of a friend is the best joy there is.

I sing for the joy of the slaves that have gone

who knew only of torment and grief that was borne.

For evil brings sadness without a glimmer of hope

and that is the cruelest that was done to you.

I sing praise to you for all the things that you have suffered

and pray for the comfort of that pain once endured.

But with the journeys that you have made, we keep praying for a day

when we can all be each other friendships to be made,

for friendship is a love of a strength that you showed

for in your pain you showed us how to love.

So as we gather around in this room filled with much hope and joy,

we thank you for those journeys of yours.

We pray to keep striking down those cruelest of thoughts

for man should be ashamed of his innermost thoughts,

for sicknesses are born but take nurturing to grow,

so now we ask that they never be given even the time to be explored,

for all of those cruel acts just stole from the lives,

of a people so proud that were afraid to cry,

but in their fear they taught us how to love,

so again we thank them for their torment and tears,

for they showed us how to live and remain more alive.

Love is not a dream neither is the hate

but love makes one laugh and feel so much joy,

so we pray that we may continue to love

and to share so that we may to continue to teach those we love.

For all those slaves of unmentionable crimes,

we thank you for your love that you’ve sent from time to time.

And if we ever get to feel that spirit of love,

then we’ll soar like the birds that are leavingjavascript:void(0) their nests.

So we will sing of the joy that awaits our world,

and we sing to the world of a joy that’s once received,

for the love that’s a coming like the air that we breathe.