In a poem titled Snow Geese, Mary Oliver begins: “Oh, to love what is lovely, and will not last! What a task to ask of anything or anyone, yet it is ours and not by the century or the years, but by the hours.” How wise!
How much suffering we endure as our egos struggle over what is set in place by The Creator and cannot be altered. All things change. Time can’t be suspended for even an instant. Imperceptively, the grass grows or withers, moods change, cells age, and civilizations topple.
Buddhists believe the origin of suffering is attachment. Their doctrine is different from Christianity, but their point is well taken. As ordinary humans we make ourselves miserable by clinging to everything: thoughts, habits, possessions and friends, our loved ones, our church. We are in constant battle with the inevitability of change.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus urged us not to worry but to rest in Him, Matt:11: 29, “Take my yoke upon you and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” He was talking about faith and trust in the Will of God, in the cycles of change. He was talking about relinquishment. I have been pondering this word recently; it seems to “fit” in so many circumstances.
Mary Oliver writes about loving what will not last and calls it a task. She’s right, even the simplest things are a struggle. I awake in the morning and find it hard to get up. Why? Because I love the comfort and warmth of my bed. At night I stay up later than I should because I’m attached to whatever I am doing. With every thought or action during the day, comes the choice of attachment or relinquishment.
Today’s practice in an online spirituality course is one-pointed attention, giving up multitasking to concentrate wholly on one thing. This too, is relinquishment and it is difficult but, the practice illuminates my need of cultivating acceptance of the present moment, which is nothing less than welcoming God’s Will.
(The full poem may be read at Poetry Mountain if you scroll about half way down.)
I do so love Mary Oliver and the Buddhist perspective. Great translation!
Thanks, Sally, she’s extraordinary, isn’t she? I’m trying to do a whole series of posts around her poems: see “Her work is loving the world” on the top menu. The problem is I don’t want to infringe on her copyright and it’s hard to pull just a strand from her poems.
I need to learn to relinquish the right things. I need to learn to just “be.” My mother has been trying to help by teaching me about the Law of Attraction, a universal law that we all employ whether we realize it or not just by the power of our thoughts.
A calm positive attitude certainly helps. They say, “It’s not what happens to you in life, it’s how you react to what happens to you.” Thanks for stopping by, Shiloh.