Marvin X on Maze's Joy & Pain and the tragic fire in Oakland in the Fruitvale District

Although my favorite song is Nature Boy, Joy and Pain is probably second because
it is the  essence of life itself. Life is never all joy or all pain. The Qur'an says after difficulty comes ease.
So I have come to not get excited in moments of joy because I know it is not the essence of life, just as pain is not forever. Another song I love is by Kirk Franklin's The Storm is Over Now.

On behalf of the Black Arts Movement and the Black Arts Movement Business District here in Oakland, we extend our condolences to the all the families of victims in the Fruitvale District tragic fire.
Sincereely,

--Marvin X, BAMBD Planner