Tell Me About Your Despair…
February 13th, 2019
“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.” (Mary Oliver)
Being human is wonderful, and also, hard.
When I find myself in darkness, I often think of wild geese.
Poetry is a tremendous source of inspiration for me. It is also a salve. Today, I’m particularly grateful for Wild Geese, by Mary Oliver. (I am not surprised to hear that this poem has saved lives.) The poem brings comfort by reminding us we’re not alone, and that this, too, shall pass.
In my quest to memorize my favorite poems, I recently recited Wild Geese:
Mary Oliver passed away recently. She remains my favorite poet. I love pretty much everything she wrote, but my favorite Mary Oliver poems include The Summer Day, Invitation, Wild Geese, Why I Wake Early, The Journey, Sleeping in the Forest, and The Fourth Sign of the Zodiac.
Oliver’s “Instructions for how to live a life” are: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it. I have tried to live my life by these words since discovering them a handful of years ago.
Thanks so much for stopping by. I appreciate your readership very much.
- Categories: Adventure, Life and Leadership
- Tags: darkness, despair, loneliness, mary oliver, poems, poetry, wild geese
- Comments: 1 Comment
I loved her as well. I am in despair right now (long, seemingly happy marriage, followed by a terrible, acrimonious divorce) and I keep thinking of a line of hers….”I turned my head for a moment, and that became my life.” Exactly what happened, and 39 years vanished. Hope to have a happier comment at some point!