An Excerpt From Refiner's Fire

I brought a Mark Helprin book with me on the trip and wanted to share a bit of it. This passage takes place as the captain of a boat full of refugees is standing on the bow of his ship staring down into the Mediterranean:

As he looked down into the bow waves he saw the faithful and miraculous shape of dolphins, speaking to one another in chirps and whistles. They had great strength and endurance, and yet they were beautiful and not hard. By observing this he settled a conflict within himself, determining to be as strong as necessary and yet not to be hard. One of them veered outward and in so doing made it possible to catch Paul Levy's eye, and both seemed to smile without smiling. From that day forward he knew how to knit together strength and love. (pg. 30)