Steve Nash

Kahlil Gibran on Joy and Sorrow

Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was
oftentimes filled with your tears.
And how else can it be?
The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you
can contain.
Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned
in the potter's oven?
And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that
was hollowed with knives?
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall
find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you
joy.
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall
see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your
delight.

Some of you say, "Joy is greater thar sorrow," and others say,
"Nay, sorrow is the greater."
But I say unto you, they are inseparable.
Together they come, and when one sits, alone with you at your
board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.

Verily you are suspended like scales between your sorrow and
your joy.
Only when you are empty are you at standstill and balanced.
When the treasure-keeper lifts you to weigh his gold and his
silver, needs must your joy or your sorrow rise or fall.

I'm afraid we can't let that one go, Ivan.

Mel Rosenthal

Mel Rosenthal best known for his photo-documentary work "In the South Bronx of America"