Yes
It could happen any time, tornado,
earthquake, Armageddon. It could happen.
Or sunshine, love, salvation.
It could, you know. That's why we wake
and look out - no guarantees
in this life.
But some bonuses, like morning,
like right now, like noon,
like evening.
- William Stafford
Thanks for sharing the words of William Stafford. I became acquainted with his work while living in Oregon.
I really like this one:
Through the Junipers
by William Stafford
In the afternoon I wander away through
the junipers. They scatter on low hills
that open and close around me.
If I go far enough, all sight or sound
of people ends. I sit and look endless miles
over waves of those hills.
And then between sentences later when anyone
asks me questions troubling to truth,
my answers wander away and look back.
There are these days, and there are these hills
nobody thinks about, even in summer.
And part of the life doesn’t have any home.
Dear Patti,
The picture and poem are beautiful. Rosy clouds remind me of my grandfather since he was the first person I ever asked (when I was 5 or younger) “Why are the clouds PINK!?”
Like the poem but for that “or”
Tornados, earthquakes, Armageddon (metaphorically speaking) and sunshine, love, salvation (literally speaking) are not mutually exclusive. We need to remember that even at the worst of times in our lives.
I am caring for my mother who has an aggressive form of ALS and is in the final months of her life. We have, during these last eight months, experienced both grief and joy beyond measure. There is no “either/or” in the way she lives and there is no “either/or” in the way she dies.
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In 2005, Patti Digh started her blog, 37days, following the death of her stepfather who died just 37 days after being diagnosed with cancer. Six books about living mindfully followed. And there’s more to come.
