Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Muse Day- December



 
Night-blooming Cereus


Wild Geese

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting---
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

- Mary Oliver


For more Muse Day posts see Carolyn at Sweet Home and Garden Chicago.

18 comments:

Teresa said...

Very nice poem. Thanks for the musing material.

Nell Jean said...

Very inspiring, the poem. The world does go on, despite our despair. Sharing our experiences widens our acceptance.

Night blooming cereus is done for the year at my place. Some of the spent blooms are still hanging, but will drop off soon, as there were no pollinators in the greenhouse behind closed doors.

Tatyana@MySecretGarden said...

Lovely night beauty and a very touching poem. Thank you Mary Delle.

janie said...

I will be thinking of this poem all day! Very nice.

Christine B. said...

I suppose that night blooming cereus is outdoors in your secret garden. Here in Alaska zone 4 it is a beautiful houseplant.

Christine B.

Muhammad khabbab said...

beautiful poem. I am sure this bloom is fragrant as well. Would love to have my hands on this plant.

Victoria said...

What a Beautiful bloom..and lovely poetry!
AWesome!

Noelle Johnson said...

They are so beautiful. We used live next door to a couple who grew these. Every year, they would invite us over to see them bloom at night. Thank you for showing them!

Rose said...

A beautiful and thought-provoking choice for Muse Day, Mary Delle! I actually discovered the poetry of Mary Oliver through blogging last year--another benefit of blogging, finding such a wonderful and talented poet.

Autumn Belle said...

Hey, your post today is about my favourite plant and a touching poem to match its beauty. It was my late dad's 'goddess'. We used to have one at home when I was little. It usually bloomed at night, between 8-10pm. We have to use a torch light in the garden to watch it bloom. My dad made sure that it was a family affair watching his night flower bloom. It has a beautiful exotic scent. I have been looking for this plant for a long long time. Can it grow from seed?

James David said...

Truly a muse had visited your garden with the night blooming flower - the orchid cactus.
A lovely poem too.

Autumn Belle said...

Mary Delle, my post today is dedicated to you.

Sweet Home and Garden Carolina said...

Thanks for contributing that lovely poem and photo, Mary Delle.

Anonymous said...

I'm not familiar with night blooming cereus, is it scented? It seems like night bloomers are often sweetly scented to attract the moths. I'm sure it's common there in southern California to have flowers this time of year, but it isn't here, that's why I'm enjoying it so much. I took a photographic inventory yesterday and was amazed to find 9 different roses and 15 different flowers still blooming. Amazing.

LeSan said...

Oh this was just beautiful. There were so many gems in it. The one that pleases me because it surprised me was the line "...the soft animal of your body..." I have never thought of it that way at all. What a treat to see something new. Thank you!

Wendy said...

I read a book many years ago called Cereus Blooms at Night. THanks for the photo which reminds me of the moving novel!

Chloe m said...

Hi!
Love your new blog layout, looking good, MaryDelle!
I love the muse you shared. Just lovely and good for my imagination.

rosey

Anonymous said...

Lovely flower! I have never heard of a night-blooming flower...