Tuesday February 11<\/p>\n
I have not posted a poem by Mary Oliver recently. \u00a0“Making the House Ready for the Lord” emerges from the depths of winter. \u00a0If I use my imagination and take her images seriously, it makes my toes curl a little; maybe especially the squirrel. \u00a0\u00a0“It’s cold outside,” says the poet,\u00a0\u00a0“How deep might the capacity for welcome run? \u00a0Whose house is it anyway?”<\/p>\n
Winter won’t last forever. \u00a0 Have a blest day.<\/p>\n
john sj<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Making the House Ready for the Lord<\/p>\n
Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but<\/p>\n
still nothing is as shining as it should be<\/p>\n
for you. Under the sink, for example, is an<\/p>\n
uproar of mice \u2013 it is the season of their<\/p>\n
many children. What shall I do? And under<\/p>\n
the eaves<\/p>\n
and through the walls the squirrels<\/p>\n
have gnawed their ragged entrances \u2013 but it is<\/p>\n
the season<\/p>\n
when they need shelter, so what shall I do?<\/p>\n
And the raccoon limps into the kitchen and<\/p>\n
opens the cupboard<\/p>\n
while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;<\/p>\n
what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling<\/p>\n
in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly<\/p>\n
up the path to the door. And still I believe<\/p>\n
you will<\/p>\n
come, Lord: you will, when I speak to the fox,<\/p>\n
the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering<\/p>\n
sea-goose, know<\/p>\n
that really I am speaking to you whenever I say,<\/p>\n
as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in,<\/p>\n
Come in.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mary Oliver<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tuesday February 11 I have not posted a poem by Mary Oliver recently. \u00a0“Making the House Ready for the Lord” emerges from the depths of winter. \u00a0If I use my imagination and take her images seriously, it makes my toes … Continue reading