"I walk in the world to love it."
Mary Oliver, Long Life
Reading Mary Oliver is good for my soul. She stops me. When that happens I am clear, present and totally myself.
I wish it happened more often.
Every time an artist nudges me into a place where I can see again I tell myself that I want to stay there. But I don't. Instead of learning how to live deeply I walk right back into frenetic fray. I check the time, my phone, what I've accomplished lately, and the moment is lost.
Yet, it's this deeper life that I am convinced God is calling me into. For years I've tried to engage God in all things. But going forward I sense that this calling needs to be less wide and more deep; not in terms of complexity or abstraction, but in terms of love.
I want to love things more. I want to give more of myself to every encounter. I want to do that fearlessly. I think this is what I've been waiting to do.
Love takes time. It's the only thing that can slow me down in a lasting way.