From Plum Village in France
news of your passing
your moving on
and leaving us to wonder
how such peace
as you embodied in your every word
your every gesture
the quiet sureness of your voice
how the peace you taught
with such compassion
such insight into our too human hearts
could have emerged from the inferno
we call Viet Nham
still meaning not the country
or the people
but the war
that left such deep wounds
in its wake

Your life a precious gift
to all who knew you
even at a distance
through your many books
the teachings caught on camera
and how good to hear
that after your long exile
you were home
in Hue in the monastery
where you trained
as a young man
for your long journey
to the West

Your presence now
all the more palpable
to those you've touched
deeply over the years
will live on as a reminder
to bring forward
something of your spirit
of your peace
into our lives
into this troubled world