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| Illustration by Edward Gorey. |
The Real Work by Wendell Berry
It may be that when we no longer know what to do
we have come our real work,
and that when we no longer know which way to go
we have come to our real journey.
The mind that is not baffled is not employed.
The impeded stream is the one that sings.
Yesterday, today, are not different than the days around them. The questions are not bigger or more plentiful. It is just that they are constant, though for many no answer is required.
These are not false starts, these first steps along what proves to the unanticipated path. It is not the wrong road. The explorers traveled this way, celestial guidance and maps of questionable accuracy. I believe this: I will arrive where I need to be.
22 comments:
Isn't it strange that while infected with whatever is going around, the only thought in my head is "where is the tissue"? Gagh.
A microscopic viral invasion is stealing depth and contemplation.
My sign and my DNA remain as they were: mine. My system is somewhat defensive today.
Artist and Geek - Any illness, especially when it clogs the head, leaves me witless. I don't know if my sign has changed...will I need a personality transplant? Feel better soon.
Those thoughts are like coming home. A deep breath, and deep release. That is what those thoughts inspired in me.
thank you!
Cottony, cranky, leaky, whiny and oversharing. Sorry. My body is killing billions of non-living life forms as we speak. And counting.
The study of one astronomer has apparently turned me from extrovert to introvert and the Zodiac now has 13 signs again. Not that it necessarily means anything but some gifted mugs now belong to someone else.
Thank you for your well wishese (sneezed while typing), a simple URTI turns me into a 5 year old.
Please do not change your personality, it is what it should be.:)
P.S. I have no idea what any of this has to do with your intended post, except that all I can think of are Choprah's sparkly glasses. Mea Culpa.
My question, why can't we co-exist in peace with these parasites?
Ah, Marylinn - thank you. This was like gulping down a couple of litres of cool, clear water. It's a relief to know so many of us are being carried along on questions rather than answers. I've more-or-less surrendered my old quest for answers, seeking instead patience, acceptance and understanding. As you suggest, there is no wrong road. We travel as we must, knapsacks of curiosity and unknowing leading us forward to where we need to be.
Wise words from Wendell Berry, too. I so love what he wrote about sacred groves (you'll have read his book 'The Unsettling of America'?). Although in a rather different context, this line seems to affirm what you are saying (We need) ". . . places that we must enter in a kind of cultural nakedness, without comforts or tools, to submit to rather than to conquer. . . "
"The impeded stream is the one that sings.' Yes. How deeply reassuring that is. xo
ahh..
I hear the sound of letting go.
The otehr day at yoga, while doing a big, spread leg forward bed, siad, "Don't look back - there is nothing to see. "
Gems like that pop up just when you need them. I was glad for it.
Melinda - Thank you. I hope your work is going well.
Artist and Geek - It sounds as though you are under siege from these interlopers. No, even if I am banished from Aquarius (and I don't know if that has been affected) I am not capable of that magnitude of change, and thank you.
We send chicken (or miso) soup and reviving wishes. Let us know how you're doing.
Claire - The search for patience, understanding, acceptance and a word I noticed you used the other day, alignment, holds a promise of achievement that the insistence on answers (emphatic pounding of fist) never has. I've made note of the Wendell Berry book. Seekers, I am without another word that fits as well. Pilgrims. It seems a holy quest. xo
Denise - A gem for sure..."there is nothing to see." There is certainly nothing to be changed, done or undone. I thought today how the acreage given to letting go has increased. If I were Fimo, I'd be nearly softened enough to mold into something.
sometimes we hear exactly what we need to hear, when we need to hear it. thank you so much for wendell berry's The Real Work.
i've been feeling unmoored lately.
Though I agree that we are not merely the sum of our DNA, I don't think Deepak Chopra's platitudes provide any deeper insight beyond stroking both his ego and bank account.
Susan - Unmoored may be the word. I'm glad that Wendell Berry spoke to you as well. We are so fortunate in our community, the number of places where messages await.
Robert - I don't believe that healing or enlightenment should be commodities or cottage industries, yet they are. We need to be attentive.
Dear Marylinn-thank you for your well wishes and virtual provisions. Miso and Kelp are always in stock and copious amounts of chicken soup and garlic have been consumed.
Thank you also for your kind tolerance of feverish ramblings.
As to Aquarius, well, they way I see it we all have multiple astrological signs. I'm keeping my mugs and buying some more.
Added Wendell Berry to my list.
I can so relate to Artist and Geek...hope she gets well soon.
Another awesome post. I like what grrl+dog said about "the sound of letting go" and "not looking back there is nothing to see".
My visits here are always cerebral and enlightening...
Like Claire and others, I have more questions than answers. I came out of the womb asking WHY?
Donna-thank you for your kind wishes. I hope "she" gets well soon too. Thankfully, I'm quite in touch with my feminine side. "She" appreciates it and replies "Why not?"
Except for egg-laying.
P.S. Donna. My apologies. Hope you get well soon too?
Artist and Geek - You are welcome for Wendell Berry. I hope your infection is loosening its grip (grippe?) As to our signs, yes, we are made of many parts. Hold onto the mugs.
Donna - Thank you. I hope you are well. Always the thoughtful dialogue sparked by comments, further avenues to explore.
Thank you Marylinn, the survival rate of the new Zodiac flu H12N13 is not yet known. We displeased the gods of mug making.
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