Being astonished.

I am, once again, reading the poetry of Mary Oliver. I am always touched by her sense of immersion in the world where she is at any given moment and then the questions that that presence gives rise to. She says it in the first number of lines in her poem entitled, *Messenger.

        My work is loving the world.
        Here the sunflowers, there the hummingbird - 
             equal seekers of sweetness.
        Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.
        Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.

        Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?
        Am I no longer young, and still not half-perfect? Let me
             keep my mind on what matters,
        which is my work,

        which is mostly standing still and learning to be
             astonished

There is more to this poem but this part is what has struck me especially. It relates too, to a theme often found in the work of the spiritual writer Henri J. Nouwen. He speaks about the need of each one of us to take time just to be. He says we all need moments of space in which to meet what - or who - is deep within us. We need moments of stillness and quiet in order to become whole; in order to become who we are meant to be.

For Mary Oliver that is what her poetry is all about. She would describe those moments of stillness as ones in which she is learning to 'be astonished'. That is beautiful.
                

December 1 is the beginning of the Christian season of Advent. Advent is the time leading up to the celebration of the birth of Jesus at Christmas. It too is a time of stillness, waiting and watching. It is a time when we are called to recognize the longing in our hearts for something MORE in our lives. It is the MORE, in a way, that gives our lives meaning - whether you are 'religious' or not.

* Mary Oliver: Thirst, Beacon Press, Boston 2006