Dear friends,
I came across this poem for the first time a couple of weeks ago and wanted to share it.
Another beautiful ode to life by Mary Oliver which I hope you will enjoy too!
The Summer Day
Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
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,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
Mary Oliver
And perhaps a chance for us to reflect on these words…
“Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?”
Claire x
A goose-bump poem, thanks so much, Claire!
I am really happy to know you enjoyed it too!
Wonderful poem Claire!
A beautiful reminder indeed!
I love this poem too and, since I’ve been a fan of your books and your blog, I invariably think of you when I read the last two lines! Another enduring presence in American poetry, the late Maxine Kumin, wrote in the Women’s Review of Books: ‘Mary Oliver is an indefatigable guide to the natural world, particularly to its lesser-known aspects.’
Thank you Christopher. Your words are really touching about the last two lines. To inspire this in people is my passion!
Mary Oliver is certainly a wonderful guide to us in this pursuit!