Run to the rescue with love and peace will follow.

Activist, musician, and actor River Phoenix wrote these lyrics for an unreleased song six years before his tragic death in 1993 at just 23 years old. Sometimes referred to as the “vegan James Dean,” Phoenix was a passionate animal rights activist and environmentalist. He reflects the sentiments of this work in his writing, urging readers and listeners to understand the importance of loving and empathetic compassion. Phoenix’s younger brother, actor Joaquin Phoenix, quoted these lyrics while accepting his 2020 Academy Award for Best Actor for “The Joker.” “I think that’s when we’re at our best: when we support each other,” he added. “Not when we cancel each other out for past mistakes, but when we help each other to grow, when we educate each other, when we guide each other toward redemption. That is the best of humanity.” River’s poetry is a reminder that we can cultivate great outer and inner peace through active and deliberate benevolence.