"Always there is something worth saying about glory, about gratitude."
― Mary Oliver, American poet of mystery, wild, awe, terror, devotion, gratitude and grace.
― Mary Oliver, American poet of mystery, wild, awe, terror, devotion, gratitude and grace.
The Uses Of Sorrow
(In my sleep I dreamed this poem) Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this, too, was a gift. ― Mary Oliver, from Thirst, 2007 |
...Still, what I want in my life
is to be willing to be dazzled― to cast aside the weight of facts and maybe even to float a little above this difficult world. I want to believe I am looking into the white fire of a great mystery. I want to believe that the imperfections are nothing― that the light is everything―that it is more than the sum of each flawed blossom rising and fading. And I do. And shouldn't we all? ― Mary Oliver, from "The Ponds," House of Light, 1990 Flower of the Sweet-Lady or Large Petaled Gentian―native to the mountain ranges of Central and Southern Europe in the spring after snow melt. We took the photo above on a hike in 2008 in Val di San Niicolo in the Dolomiten Alps in the Trentino Alto Adige region of Northern Italy, one of the many places where the virus is raging now.
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As we continue to navigate our first hours and first days through this global crisis, remember that many communities all over the world are living through it alongside you, and keep them in your thoughts.
Please especially keep the people on the front lines – the EMTs, physician assistants, nurses, doctors, long-term care givers, firemen, police, and medical researchers – in your thoughts.
These are uniquely complex times, and I hope that you find peace and wisdom amidst them.
Remember kindness and compassion first always, and that the power of empathy and hope knows no bounds.
Please especially keep the people on the front lines – the EMTs, physician assistants, nurses, doctors, long-term care givers, firemen, police, and medical researchers – in your thoughts.
These are uniquely complex times, and I hope that you find peace and wisdom amidst them.
Remember kindness and compassion first always, and that the power of empathy and hope knows no bounds.