day 8 of 2009 year in review; moment of peace.
my moments of peace have to do with sitting quietly on my couch and petting my dog, or sitting outside and being present with the beauty of nature.
any time i can be still and quiet, is a moment of peace for me.
the following poem by mary oliver, my favorite poet, hits a moment of peace just right.
i hope it affects you as much as it has me over the years and that it lingers with you.
“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.”
WILD GEESE, by Mary Oliver
bindu wiles 
Anything involving Mary Oliver gives me pause. With all the great posts today, I am really looking forward to tomorrows posts on challenges.
I am sure they will be inspiring.
Have you read Mary Oliver’s book, THIRST? When it first came out, I was so excited to read it – and then I saw the dedication page which told me Molly Malone Cook had died and I literally fell to the floor at Barnes and Noble and started crying. I sat and read and cried and read and cried. The most beautiful, truth-endowed poems I have ever read.
Ahhhh, lovely.
Thank you for the reminder. And the post, etc etc etc.
you had me at the photo.
This is one of my favorite poems. soft animal of your body love what it loves…
Such a treat to find it here today. And dog petting is a big one for me, too.
Julie Jordan Scott, that is so beautiful.
Thank you for sharing that poem. It transported me from my four walls and small concerns to the wider, beautiful, magnificent world. I’m saving it for future perspective adjustments.