Messenger ~Mary Oliver

Messenger   My work is loving the world. Here the sunflowers, the hummingbird—   equal seekers of sweetness. Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums.Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.   Are my boots old? Is my coat torn? Am I no longer young, and still not half-perfect? Let me    keep my mind on what matters, which is my work,   Which is mostly standing still and learning to be   astonished. The phoebe, the delphinium. The sheep in the pasture, and the pasture. Which is mostly rejoicing, since all of the ingredients are here,   Which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart    and these body-clothes,a mouth with which to give shouts of joy   to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam, telling them all, over and over, how it is    that we live forever.
Mary Oliver (2006) Thirst