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How to Live a “Wild and Precious Life”
I Try For the Answer Every Day
One of my favorite poets, the late Mary Oliver, in her poem, “The Summer Day,” asks a question that quietly blew me way when I first heard it.
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with to do
with your one wild and precious life?”
It’s not a long sentence, but it is packed with curiosity and challenge. It defines the essence of a full life. It’s simplicity is deceptive, as I try to answer the question and live out the answer. I’ve had to break it down, to be able to wrap my head around it.
I ask myself this question every single day. Every morning, before my feet hit the floor, it enters my mind and I invite it to join my day. Despite the fact that it is a question, it’s also an affirmation. It’s a nudge to begin the day with purpose. I take parts of the poem, to reflect, to meditate on, even to pray with.
“What is it you plan to do…?”
This part reminds me that I have to actively imagine my path. Not just allow myself to be carried along by inertia. Where am I going? How the hell do I get there? The words of the poem stress the wholeness of our futures. The answer to the poet’s question is not, “become a lawyer” or“ ”make a…
