Softening Unity

Although my stay on earth
is brief, bewildering, bitter,
I urge myself to aspire
to kinder, generous acts
that may not alter
the violent landscape,
but may ease the existence
of fellow sufferers
in the global village.

Gary Beck has spent most of his adult life as a theater director and worked as an art dealer when he couldn't earn a living in the theater. He has also been a tennis pro, a ditch digger and a salvage diver. His original plays and translations of Moliere, Aristophanes and Sophocles have been produced Off Broadway. His poetry, fiction and essays have appeared in hundreds of literary magazines and his published books include 40 poetry collections, 16 novels, 4 short story collections, 2 collection of essays and 8 books of plays. Gary lives in New York City. Read other articles by Gary.