What We Long For
I loved these two poems. They speak to the spaces of this time. The first one is from Rumi-
The Guest House
This being human is a
guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a
meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them
all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the
shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and
invite them in.
Be grateful for whatever
comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.
The Longing
Blessed be the longing that brought you here
And quickens your soul with wonder.
May you have the courage to listen to
the voice of desire
That disturbs you when you have
settled for something safe.
May you have the wisdom to enter
generously into your own unease
To discover the new direction your
longing wants you to take.
May the forms of your belonging—in
love, creativity, and friendship—
Be equal to the grandeur and the call of your soul.
May the one you long for long for you.
May your dreams gradually reveal the
destination of your desire.
May a secret Providence guide your
thought and nurture your feeling.
May your mind inhabit life with the
sureness with which your body inhabits the world.
May your heart never be haunted by
ghost-structures of old damage.
May you come to accept your longing as
divine urgency.
May you know the urgency with which
God longs for you.
― John O’Donohue
Together we discover,
Louisa
P.S. I love to connect, feel free to comment.