I believe that there is an ideal that hovers above and permeates the earth, the ideal of paradise, which is not merely a creation of the imagination, but the ultimate reality in which all things exist and toward which all things strive. I believe that this vision of paradise shines upon us from the sunlight, from the greenery of the earth, from the flowing stream, from the joy of young spring, from the quiet peace of a winter morning, from the beauty of the human face, and from the richness of human love. Everywhere on earth, the spirit of paradise is awake and lets its call resonate. It reaches, often unbeknownst to us, to our inner ear. It tunes the strings of our life's harp and urges us to send forth our longing beyond the finite, just as flowers send their fragrance into the air and birds their songs.