“It was early,
which has always been my hour
to begin looking
at the world
and of course,
even in the darkness,
to begin
listening into it,
especially
under the pines
where the owl lives
and sometimes calls out
as I walk by,
as he did
on this morning.
So many gifts!
What do they mean?
In the marshes
where the pink light
was just arriving
the mink
with his bristle tail
was stalking
the soft-eared mice,
and in the pines
the cones were heavy,
each one
ordained to open.
Sometimes I need
only to stand
wherever I am
to be blessed.
Little mink, let me watch you.
Little mice, run and run.
Dear pine cone, let me hold you
as you open.”
Mary Oliver
Chorlton Unitarians 