The following is one of my very favorite poems. Perhaps you love it, too! I invite you to read it over and then ask yourself, “What is it that you know you have to do?” Then, I encourage you to do it.
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.
~ Mary Oliver
Now, my lovely, what is it that you are going to do, by when will you do it, and how will I know? Laura
Laura Biering has an infectious zeal for coaching people who want to do
enlivening work and live inspired lives. She's fired up about the power of taking risks - great and small - and the rewards that come as a result. She's also passionate about (1) creativity and authenticity and their potential to change the world, (2) frolicking with her adorable four-legged children, and (3) retreating with those she loves at her farm in Southeast Georgia, Brinson's Race. Visit her website at True Voices.
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I love it, Laura!! Thanks for the inspiration.
You just can’t go wrong with Mary Oliver, can you? She always seems to have the right words — and, you introduced her to me. So thanks for this and thanks for the gift of her.
I like this a lot. I’m now going to look up this Mary Oliver. Thanks Laura!
Thanks, ladies, for your comments. And Sarah, welcome to RiskADay.com! I am so pleased you are here, and that I have converted someone new to Mary Oliver. As Mary Ann said, you can’t go wrong with her, but I would recommend starting with her two books of Collected Poems. She is still writing, so there are works after these, but they are a great representative of what all her work is like. I’ll post more of her on here, soon, I am sure, so stay tuned!