Milton was blind,
Beethoven deaf.
Yet from the first,
we have an epic poem,
and from the latter,
we have oceans of pulchritude and passion.
But for Van Gogh's madness,
we would not have "Starry Night"
and "Sunflowers" and hundreds
of other masterpieces that hang
in museums and in our minds.
Afflictions do not always debillitate.
Sometimes they create.
Our world would be much the less
without their magnificent, myriad works--
the poems and paintings,
the symphonies and songs--
that bring beauty into our lives endlessly.
Say a prayer and give thanks
to those who endured pain
long enough to transmute
theirs into what we
will always find joy.

TOD HOWARD HAWKS