“We are here for a little window. And to use the time to catch and share shards of light and laughter and grace seems to me the great story.” Brian Doyle, from his “Notes on Wonder” in One Long River of Song. A collection of his work published after he died. Everyone should have a copy of it.
I was having lunch when I read this line, and heard a gull, and I looked up and saw the birds, and the sea and the sky and I had to step out on the deck for a closer look, and then that boat came by and I thought: Holy cow. Thank you. This is what I was born today to see– and now I’m giving it to you. Pay attention to shards of light, to grace, to laughter. If you don’t look for them you may not find them.
While this poem may not make you laugh out loud, it will make you smile– unless you are a librarian. (Yes, I fold corners, too.) It is in the collection titled The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace and Renewal edited by James Crews. I keep that book and others close, because every morning I do my best to say my prayers and read a few poems first thing, rather than checking my phone for the news or messages and emails. In my favorite everyday books one page leads to another in a peaceful way that Google searches never do.
