From Bitter Reality to Resilient Living
When it’s over, I want to say: all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.
When it’s over, I don’t want to wonder
if I have made of my life something particular, and real.
I don’t want to find myself sighing and frightened,
or full of argument.
I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.
—Mary Oliver, from When Death Comes
This past week, Mary Oliver passed away. She was a poet whose words became popular, which can often be the best and worst case scenario for a poet. Her zest for life, love of nature, and readily understood turns of phrase helped people put into words what they could not articulate for themselves.
Frustrations, disappointments, and difficulties may be scattered throughout our lives. But, refuse to let this side of reality be the only side to which you give your attention. Insist on finding the beauty, joy, and hope that happens every day as well. Yes, sometimes you have to look hard. And yes, it is worth the effort.
Live while you’re alive!
Worth Repeating
Instructions for living a life. Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.
-Mary Oliver
