The Wisdom of Mary Oliver

Throughout my journey, particularly these last fourteen years of transitioning into this artist’s life, various writers have moved and inspired me. I’ve carried some poems and quotes with me over the years and many have sustained me when things were challenging. There have been times when my refrigerator  looked more like confetti than an appliance. I’ve decided I’d like to try sharing these with you on a fairly regular basis, a sort of “Wisdom Wednesdays” kind of thing. We’ll see how it goes. If you like it we’ll keep it going.

One of my favorite poets is Mary Oliver. My friend, Piper, introduced me to her many years ago. I offer here a poem that has been an important guiding light to me on my path.

The Journey

One day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting their bad advice—
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
“Mend my life!”
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations—
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice,
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do—
determined to save
the only life you could save.

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