“Wild Geese” by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your kneesFor 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 your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the 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.
Beautiful. And a timely reminder. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHi Elephant's Child, thanks, yes a good reminder to myself.
DeleteI love her poetry. Years ago, when I first started writing my blog I asked her if I could publish one of her poems and she asked me to jump through a lot of hoops to do so. Needless to say I never published that blog post. I’m glad you did.
ReplyDeleteHi Lori, thanks, oh I never thought to ask, just noted her name, hope I don't get in trouble. eek shame on me but I do love this one.
DeleteOh, I do love the words of Mary Oliver. Always very moving. Well, I hope you don't get in trouble either!
ReplyDelete