the world is so happy
to have you in it!
your smile is
a resplendent dawn
for everyone
who would want
to start a day
without you?
you bring light
into the lives
of so many people
& you bless so many more
with your kindness
you cross
from east-to-west
with the ease
of one hand washing
the other
your mind is a koan
you can dream
in four languages
& you speak
in happy colors
& laughter
you are empowered
by the organizational mind
of a major general
& the integrity of a sage
no one works harder
& there’s no one more likely
to invent a perfection
than you
your ethical soul
is immovable
& you never learned
to lie
like the people you admire,
you are unpretentiously remarkable
you were born
at the most fortuitous time––
with a gift of radiant life––
with the rarest seed
of spirit
under the sign
of the tiger
with a happy heart
i’m so in love with you
my words forget how
to touch the ground