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“Wild Geese”
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination.” — Mary Oliver Mary Oliver’s Wild Geese” touches a tender place in my soul, and I often share it with students in my writing workshops. As a child in Sunday school, I was terrified of disappointing the punitive, restrictive God portrayed in our leather-covered bibles. No matter how “good” I was, or how closely I followed the rules, I still felt judged and unworthy. Today, I follow my moral compass, but I don’t allow fear to constrict my life. As Mary Oliver reminds me, we were all created to shine our own light; to find our purpose in…
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Following your inner compass: “The Journey”
“And there was a new voice which you slowly recognized as your own.” — Mary Oliver As we age, many of us — especially women — face the prospect of caregiving after our kids are grown. We might have to nurse an injured spouse or elderly parents; sometimes all at the same time. As an only child, I had full responsibility for the care of my parents, and learned to answer calls for help at an early age. After my widowed mother became ill with heart disease and vascular dementia, I spent nearly 10 years focusing on her physical health and emotional wellbeing — while neglecting my own. I don’t…
