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 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.
Photo credit from Fickr Creative Commons
http://www.flickr.com/photos/j_benson/
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Cranky Cuss
john tapley
Catnlion
WriteNOWMom
Colony of Losers
Jane Gideon
Salon.com
Comments
Have been immersed in school so have only had stray moments to drop by so I welcomed this chance to post something I love without spending too much time composing.
I love this poem and can declaim it.
announcing your place in the family of things."
Good luck in school!
I do love Mary Oliver--she speaks to me with her love of all things wild and natural.
I will be thinking of this poem all day.
A poem I can actually understand. Beautiful!
Isn't she good? Her stage in life and her love of nature suits me so well.
Sao Kay,
I will stop by today to visit your Poppies.
JR Dog,
Yeah, this one is so near the heart of matters. The first line says it all.
Michael,
Had to laugh at your comment. I too sometimes do not "get" poetry and cannot do it well myself.
Yes, in many ways Oliver names my spiritual center. This one just resonated with me. Been reciting it all day to myself.
1_irrtated_mom
So glad you like it! I think of her as a woman's poet and a wise woman, an elder.
Roy,
So glad to introduce you to her. Really really wonderful outlook and lyrical language.
Ghostie,
Yeah, the honking is kinda distracting. The geese fly over my house all year here in the temperate zone and I always watch them. Just this year ,they flew over in a symbol for women--the circle and the cross. I took it as a sign.
Mary Oliver is a genius and her poems speak to me on a very deep level, too. Thanks for sharing, girl.
This is a beautiful poem. It embodies a moving “call” to recognize and embrace what often goes unnoticed and yet is palpable if only we pause to listen and look as we ought.
Thank you for posting it and for the accompanying photo. It’s great to see you have a few moments free to post on your blog again.
Rated and appreciated.
This is all really resonating with me today, especially. I have been hiding small too long. It's time to take my place. Thank you.
So glad to have connected with you in this way. I keep her books by my bed cause I just need her sometimes.
Dennis,
As always, I love having you visit. You are so sweet to notice that I have been gone for school. I was really grateful to feathered thing for giving me the opportunity to post so briefly. And on birds too!
I love their feathers and this photo was perfect in that regard.
Kind regards,
Stephanie
Annimal,
I imagine your friend's song is quite wonderful. The poem deserves music. I have been surprised that so many have said this is their favorite of Mary Oliver's. There is something so liberating and accepting about it.
O'Kathryn,
My sweet sister. Was so good to talk to you the other day. Am planning on sending you pics of Dauughter opening her voluminous B-day gifts. Love you.
Back to work...
Promise? It can be so tiring trying to be that.
You are so right. It is a HUGE effort to be good.
I promise it will be just fine if you are not.
Faith,
So glad to find so many other women and men who just love her. I don't have all her books yet so have treats in my future.
so good to know that Mary Oliver has been a support to you as to me. Sometimes she seems like a best friend who is so wise and so comforting.
My mom had dementia also and it is a cruel trick. We need to take comfort in what we can.
Bless you.
Hey, Cat!
Good to see you again. Since I have been "schooling" and not "blogging", I have missed everyone.
Thanks for coming by. Yeah, I do not "do" poetry and do not feel I am educated enough in the genre to really understand it well. However, Mary Oliver manages to cut through that and reach me.
I do know this Mary Oliver poem - it gets read from time to time during services at the church I attend. She is great!
So glad you found me! What a fun and lovely thing you grew from your planted seed. Feel free to call for this again.
Glad to introduce you. She means a great deal to me and am sure that you will find the same.
Hey you back, Robin! So glad to hear that you found a great job! Cream rises to the top. That's the best reason to be AWOL from OS.
Brenda, I can believe it. I love being in that space which she makes. I memorized it so I can carry it in my head. Out of her large body of excellent work, this one is just so emotionally right. I'd actually like to have it on my wall in calligraphy.