The
seed of the idea was planted in a Facebook conversation. In response to the link to my latest letter
to the editor of the Lancaster newspaper, a friend commented “shouting defiance
and hope.” I recognized the phrase
immediately as coming from the song “Compassion Piece” by Carolyn McDade and
replied that, in the coming months, that would be my theme song.
A
few days later, as I drove into Lancaster to meet another friend for lunch, the final
page of the song was humming in my mind.
“I ask you, will compassion walk past shadows deep and many miles long,
shouting defiance and hope?” That evoked
anticipation of the thousands of women planning to march in Washington and
other cities on the coming Saturday, shouting defiance of the bigotry, hatred,
and abuse that marked the actions of the incoming administration, and hope that
women and men, children and elders, would rally to build a nation grounded in
justice, equality, and embrace of diversity.
