One of the books I find most sacred is Mary Oliver’s compilation of poetry called “Devotions.” Mary Oliver’s poetry, at times, feels to me like a continuation of the Book of Psalms, except written in a modern context.
Continuing with my practice of florilegia I discussed previously, below I present verses that sparkled up for me this summer as I meditated through this book.
“I have refused to live
locked in the orderly house of
reasons and proofs.
The world I live in and believe in
is wider than that.”
(from “The World I Live In”)
“Be still, my soul, and steadfast.
Earth and heaven both are still watching…
Let God and the world
know you are grateful.”
(from “The Gift”)
“Maybe the desire to make something beautiful
is the piece of God that is inside each of us.”
(from “Franz Marc’s Blue Horses”)
“Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable.”
(from “Evidence”)
“Truly, we live with mysteries too marvelous
to be understood…
Let me keep my distance, always, from those
who think they have the answers.
Let me keep company always with those who say
‘Look!’ and laugh in astonishment,
and bow their heads.”
(from “Mysteries, Yes”)
“… remember
that we receive
then we give back.”
(from “At the River Clarion”)
“…the past is the past,
and the present is what your life is,
and you are capable
of choosing what that will be.”
(from “Mornings at Blackwater”)
“Instructions for living a life:
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.”
(from “Sometimes”)
“We will be known as a culture that feared death
and adored power, that tried to vanquish insecurity
for the few and cared little for the penury of the
many. We will be known as a culture that taught
and rewarded the amassing of things, that spoke
little if at all about the quality of life for
people (other people)… for rivers. All the world,
in our eyes, they will say, was a commodity.
And they will say… that the heart… in those days,
was small, and hard, and full of meanness.”
(from “Of the Empire”)
“When loneliness comes stalking, go into the fields, consider
the orderliness of the world. Notice
something you have never noticed before…
Scatter your flowers… and walk away.”
(from “Flare”)
“I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields…
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?”
(from “The Summer Day”)
“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.”
(from “Wild Geese”)
