space between...

Tonight, I am reading from Mary Oliver's collection Thirst: Poems, and again, I am grateful for the way her poems just feel true. As though I am sitting beside a mentor who doesn't have to tell stories for hours but instead just says what she needs to say in a few lines. And then says, "Now go live."

Today was a long day. 

But I promised myself I would sit alone for a minute or two and just breathe deeply and try to find some softness in that space between the inhale and the exhale.

So I did that tonight while Jon gave Ellie her bath. 

And it did feel softer as I let a few pieces of the day slip off of me. 

And I had the thought that the softness feels a little quiet in that way one can feel when you just really need a good night's sleep and then someone who loves you to make pancakes in the morning.

Know what I mean?

In this moment, I wish for you a minute or two where you can close your eyes, let your shoulders drop away from your ears, your face relax, and then you can settle in to notice your breathing...to try to find the softness you need.

PS The photo at the top of this post arrived in the mail in the form of a postagram from my friend Donna. Seeing her tea beside my little book of poems made me simply happy. You can now order Five Days in April, a collection of poems, here.