North Country, Mary Oliver
In the north country now it is spring and there
Is a certain celebration. The thrush has come home…
It is okay to know only
One song if it is this one. Hear it
Rise and fall; the very elements of your soul
Shiver nicely. What would spring be
Without it? Mostly frogs. But don’t worry, he
Arrives, year after year, humble and obedient
And gorgeous. You listen and you know
You could live a better life than you do, be
Softer, kinder. And maybe this year you will
Be able to do it. Here how his voice rises and falls. There is no way to be
Sufficiently grateful for the gifts we are given, no way to speak the Lord’s name
Often enough, though we do try, and
Especially now, as the dappled breast
Breathes in the pines and heaven’s windows in the north country, now spring has come,
Are opened wide.
