How do we learn to keep on in this difficult political time, and keep on
with courage and vision? A few years ago, I heard Archbishop Desmond Tutu
speak at a Los Angeles benefit for a South African project. He'd been
fighting prostate cancer, was tired that evening, and had taken a nap before
his talk. But when Tutu addressed the audience he became animated,
expressing amazement that his long-oppressed country had provided the world
with an unforgettable lesson in reconciliation and hope. Afterward, a few
other people spoke, and then a band from East L.A. took the stage and
launched into an irresistibly rhythmic tune. People started dancing.
Suddenly I noticed Tutu, boogying away in the middle of the crowd. I'd never
seen a Nobel Peace Prize winner, still less one with a potentially fatal
illness, move with such joy and abandonment. Tutu, I realized, knows how to
have a good time. Indeed, it dawned on me that his ability to recognize and
embrace life's pleasures helps him face its cruelties and disappointments,
be they personal or political.
Few of us will match Tutu's achievements, but in a political time that's
