A photo of rooftops in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where poet Mary Oliver spent most of her life. John Margolies Roadside America photograph archive (1972-2008), Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.
Poet Mary Oliver's profound wisdom came from a deep connection with nature, and with her boundless capacity for simply paying attention. The questions she asked were large, yet the answers she suggested were (deceptively) simple. Pay attention, she urged. Wisdom is all around us—if we're willing to listen. Taken from her poems and other writings, here are 10 things to ponder. You can find more information about the 1972 National Endowment for the Arts' Creative Writing Fellow's work and life here and here.
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” — Mary Oliver
“Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable.” — Mary Oliver
“You must not ever stop being whimsical. And you must not, ever, give anyone else the responsibility for your life.” — Mary Oliver
“The most regretful people on earth are those who felt the call to creative work, who felt their own creative power restive and uprising, and gave to it neither power nor time.” — Mary Oliver
“To pay attention, this is our endless and proper work.” — Mary Oliver
“That's the big question, the one the world throws at you every morning. ‘Here you are, alive. Would you like to make a comment?’” — Mary Oliver
“I believe in kindness. Also in mischief.” — Mary Oliver
“It's not a competition, it's a doorway.” — Mary Oliver
“Poetry isn't a profession, it's a way of life. It's an empty basket; you put your life into it and make something out of that.” — Mary Oliver
“Listen—are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life?” — Mary Oliver
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