The Summer Day by Mary Oliver

"The Summer Day"
by Mary Oliver "Who made the world? Who made the swan, and the black bear? Who made the grasshopper? This grasshopper, I mean— the one who has flung herself out of the grass, the one who is eating sugar out of my hand, who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down— who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes. Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face. Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away. I don't know exactly what a prayer is. I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass, how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields, which is what I have been doing all day. Tell me, what else should I have done? Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon? Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

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• Mary
• Oliver
• Summer
• Day

[Susanne18Apr]

This is a wonderful poem and wonderfully declaimed here, too - I know it by heart and want to present it to my much loved American friend in the next few days - since I am not a native speaker of English, this video helps me enormously to practise it for her and offers me the opportunity to declaim it well to her - so, thank you for this!

[discomeg2]

I love this poem! Thank you.

[bristolhills]

this is an amazing poem, and I love the way it was read -- Mary Oliver is my favorite too, and for those who like her, try also David Whyte.

I tried to rate this w/5 stars and ended up with 1 by mistake. 5 stars!

[trc615]

I really like that, going from the detail and the particular and all the feeling of a summer day, to bigger questions...

[davetatemusic]

great poem! She's my favorite