"Ultimately, all I know is that we get to keep on practicing opening our hearts to the raw stuff of life that every human being experiences, the energy we label as fear, rage, pain, joy, and ecstasy. I know you can't get rid of any of it. You can only know it all with tenderness and honesty. I know we all suffer from a lack of compassion and mercy for ourselves and each other. I know I need to learn to observe with passion, to think with patience, and to live with care. I know we begin and end in authenticity, and in between, our task is to find ways to make that authenticity relevant to the world. I know there is nothing more precious that I can give than love. I know I forget all of this more often than I remember, and then I get to practice some more. And I will keep practicing, pressing vitality out of every last moment, until I die with a still-hungry heart."
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