Wild Geese
by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I'll tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting--
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
gorgeous photo via baubau haus. isn't it a lovely poem? i have it pinned up in my kitchen so i can read it when i need it, and i definitely need it after the week i've had. my house is filled with sick bodies + a little guy getting molars. little sleep and little help mean very little patience, and i'm just ready to have my happy, healthy family back. hope your weekend is an awesome one, friends! catch you next week! xoxoxo
4 comments:
So gorgeous. Totally the kind of words I'm searching for. Recognizing hardship and journey, but not giving into it. Oi, I hope your sick family starts feeling better. I think I'm going to post all my comfort food recipes I've been cooking lately. Maybe you find one from me to you to help lift your spirits and give you the strength to endure the cold and the ache!
This needs to be in my kitchen too.... someday when it's finished. Beautiful. Rach- I think we need to have lunch sometime, I would love to see you and chat!
Lacey : Let's do it. I would love to see you and hang out for a bit. Send me an email and we will make a plan!
So sorry your little ones are ailing. This too shall pass, it says here...
Do you know a Mary Oliver poem called "White Blossoms", I think? I'd like to find it. Syl read it in savasana once.
I'm loving the book on chakras...kinda slow going. But I know it's a book I'll return to again and again.
Love and hugs all 'round.
AF
Post a Comment