Today’s Quote

Another lovely quote from Mary Oliver. Dream, be astonished, be surprised!

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Goodbye, Sweet Friend

I can’t believe this. My favorite author and poet is gone. All these years, I have admired her thoughts and her words.

I’ve been blogging about her since I can remember. I am so lucky to have four of her books,    A Thousand Mornings, New And Selected Poems  Vol. 1, Upstream and one of her latest books, Devotions.  

When I feel so alone, I peruse her poems and I am uplifted. She could write about anything under the sun and when she writes about nature, you feel like you are there communing with her.  When she writes about feelings,  you feel like crying.

Thanks to Getty Images for this lovely photo which I culled from the net.

One of my favorite quotes from her which I have memorized over the years are these words:

Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?

Goodbye, sweet friend.

 

 

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This Is Just Too Lovely

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A Thousand Mornings (Part 4)

Back in October  2012, I wrote about A Thousand Mornings, a title I borrowed from one of the books  of my favorite author and poet Mary Oliver. I still read it now  and then and my soul is uplifted every time I do.

Christmas.

Early this morning, I chanced upon  a radio station playing songs in between the recent news in our country. Then all of a sudden,  he inserted  a Christmas song in between. What? Christmas in August? Oh but he said it’s barely two weeks before we start the BER months. Believe me, here in the Philippines  Christmas celebrations start as early as October and end as late as February the following year.  I ended up listening to some Christmas songs on YouTube. What a joy to reminisce and remember those past days of celebrating Christmas.

Books.

I love visiting Booksale. They have so many branches in different malls here in Metro Manila.  Aren’t you thrilled going out of a book store armed with several titles of books you’ve found in your foray? They are not necessarily books by authors you love and follow but you find the texture of the pages and the  designs on the book covers so beautiful.  They speak to you of those lovely days you spent in your youth discovering new books at the library. Of course when you really want books, one could always visit National Bookstore but the books are quite expensive.

Flowers.

There was a time that I used to take shots of every bloom in my garden. I don’t have my camera now, it got broken and the other ones were destroyed during typhoon Ondoy back in 2009.  I use my tab and my phone cam once in a while but I don’t take photos as much  as several years ago. I intend to buy  a camera one of these days. Although cameras on cellphones are more convenient, I could not take those high-resolution photos that I love. I guess I have more than a thousand flowers shots saved on Photobucket.

My Garden.

And all because I love  the rich soil beneath my hands and watch things grow. Every year, I would plant bonito  ampalaya, a pot or two of chili peppers and turmeric.  Occasionally,  jute leaves sprout for a time, to grow again during the rainy season.  We have two kalamansi trees and two jackfruit trees in the garden aside from the ornamental plants that I cultivate.  Our Arius is like a  Christmas tree just waiting to be decorated with lights and tinsel.

Blogging.

But of course. I meet so many friends here. In Facebook,  my feed is full of hodgepodge of unpalatable news.  At times,  I just ignore them and make some shout outs to my friends. I don’t go public on Facebook.  I meet lovely friends here at WordPress, read beautiful blog posts and  see wonderful photos of other places that I haven’t been to.  The day won’t be complete without visiting WordPress.  I have 2,046 posts including this one for this main blog alone.

Family.

Family always comes first of course.  Now that we have Nate with us, it is always a riot when he is around. Smiles are not far behind.  I remember those days when my two kids were growing up and were left in the care of two yayas. It was always a problem for mom and dad to look for yayas for us in the province.  Nowadays, it is even harder to find household help that you can trust.

I remember those days when  I used to go up the stage every recognition day  and so proud of my kids receiving those medals. It was a thrill when my daughter graduated Magna Cum Laude  and we were given choice seats at the  venue.  Tears of joy for the standing ovation from her professors and classmates when she received that medal upon graduation.  We were so proud of her.

Clouds.

Did I say I like taking photos of clouds and watching them move when the sky is dark? I love though when the sun is hot and the day is just perfect for cloud-watching. They look so mysterious out there. These are photos  from  some years back.

I could go on of course with a thousand more mornings but I think this has gone long enough.

“All night my heart makes its way
however it can over the rough ground
of uncertainties, but only until night
meets and then is overwhelmed by
morning, the light deepening, the
wind easing and just waiting, as I
too wait (and when have I ever been
disappointed?) for redbird to sing”
– Mary Oliver, A Thousand Mornings

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Today’s Quote

One of my favorite poets is Mary Oliver. Let me amend that, my favorite poet is Mary Oliver. I love her writings so I followed her page on Facebook, a sure way of being  updated with her works. She has another book coming this October called Felicity and they raffled off  15  extra early copies (or galleys). I was not lucky enough to win but I hope I’ll find a copy when it goes out in bookstores. Here’s something from one of her lovely books, A Thousand Mornings.

I remember my  earlier post about life being a dance and I quote:

Life is a dance. Sometimes, it is a harmonious fluid movement. We are in sync with the music, utterly attuned to the dance steps, well synchronized with the motion – two steps forward, one step back. Others may lead and others may follow. It is a mad dash to a world of perfect twists and turns, but the journey is not one long road to success and happiness. One wrong move, one wrong turn, one missed step would spell disaster.

We are constantly seeking perfection and excellence in everything we do but there is really nothing perfect in this world that we live in. Life is a meaningless pursuit without challenge. They say that the journeys walked in solitude are always the most remembered. There is something we always learn along the uneven pathways and the most profound events in our lives do not end with the six o-clock news and the setting sun.

This was when I was learning to adjust to the life of being a  cancer survivor. When we falter in our steps, God is there to do the rest.

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Today’s Quote

This particular quote is one of my favorites.  She’s a sunshine on a gloomy day.

Happy 79th birthday Mary Oliver.  I pray that you will continue to touch us with your lovely thoughts and inspiring words.

 

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Just Thoughts

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The Gift Of The Morning

Good morning, good morning, good morning.

Watch, now, how I start the day
in happiness, in kindness.

– Mary Oliver

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Quoting Mary Oliver

I am a regular reader of this lovely blog, Lady Prism  who is always quoting Mary Oliver.  Why have I missed  this writer all these years?  Reading some of her works, I am reminded of   Anne Morrow Lindbergh. I didn’t even know her name until a few months ago. Sometimes, her words touch you to the core.

“Listen–are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?”

Wow, these words made me think and ask these questions? Am I happy with this life I am leading?  Is there something more that I want to achieve?  Am I just freely flowing with the tide, slowing down one moment and rapidly making waves the next?  When you think of life, you think of your Creator and this world is so vast you wonder if you are making even just a dent on it. Will you be remembered the way you want to when you are gone?

“When it’s over, I want to say: all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it is over, I don’t want to wonder
if I have made of my life something particular, and real.
I don’t want to find myself sighing and frightened,
or full of argument.

I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.”

Yes, every one of us probably dreams of one legacy to leave behind. Were you, are you,  or will you be the good example that people would remember?  I know we will always want to be remembered doing some good deeds for our fellowmen than just being a name in the obituary page. Morbid you say? In the end, it would not matter if we lived a life but it’s  how we lived it that counts.

“Ten times a day something happens to me like this – some strengthening throb of amazement – some good sweet empathic ping and swell. This is the first, the wildest and the wisest thing I know: that the soul exists and is built entirely out of attentiveness.”

I definitely agree – one finds happiness in simple things and it is amazing how everyday, we encounter  something that sometimes changes our attitude towards life

itself but the thing is , we are not aware of it because we are not attuned to our feelings.  Hello world…I am here!

“Sometimes I need
only to stand
wherever I am
to be blessed.”

Everyday is a blessing .  Let your five senses feel – God is near! Have you ever had that feeling  of oneness with the universe while you are admiring a beautiful landscape or watching a child smile and curl up her tiny hands in yours? Were you ever excited waiting for the sunrise and seeing a beautiful sunset?  Amazing isn’t it that even a simple bloom would make you swoon and say, what a beautiful life. At one point, we reach some crossroads and we feel afraid to take the untrodden paths. God leads us anywhere we want to go though sometimes, we are afraid.  Trust me, He says and we should. He will hold our hands and carry us even when we are afraid to take another step.

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