You Reading This, Be Ready
Starting here, what do you want to remember?
How sunlight creeps along a shining floor?
What scent of old wood hovers, what softened
sound from outside fills the air?
Will you ever bring a better gift for the world
than the breathing respect that you carry
wherever you go right now? Are you waiting
for time to show you some better thoughts?
When you turn around, starting here, lift this
new glimpse that you found; carry into evening
all that you want from this day. This interval you spent
reading or hearing this, keep it for life -
What can anyone give you greater than now,
starting here, right in this room, when you turn around?
~ William Stafford ~
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2 comments:
I like this poem. A lot. It reminds me of those things I have heard many times before but need to hear again and again.
The first stanza reminds me to remember the small things. Not just the small things, but things that we so often take for granted. How often do we just observe, listen, smell. Not often. Its like if it isn't something big and important then it was nothing at all and it was just a waste of time. Which is not true. What is interesting is that he uses the word want. "What do you want to remember?" It is strange to think of it that way because we don't think we choose what we pay attention to but we really do. So often we say "I guess I overlooked it" but that is because we didn't WANT to pay attention to it. What is it that we really want and don't want in our lives?
The second stanza bewilders me a little bit. The first sentence i just keep re-reading and can't quite figure it out but the second one reminds me of how we keep looking to the future. "Are you waiting for time to show you some better thoughts?" So true so true. We do do that. Everyone. If something isn't the way we like it we hope that time will make it better. What about now? What about now? Can't we make it better, or find the better in now?
The third stanza reminds you not to forget what you have learned. Also when you go into the evening remember what you want to...the good things...don't remember all the bad about the day. It isn't something to focus on. The last sentence "This interval you spent reading or hearing this, keep it for life-" reminds me of how to remember things. Remember the miniscule moments, the big moments, the loving moments, all of them! As well as you should remember the time you spent...after all you must have spent time on it for some reason!
And finally, now is what you have. What I have. What we have. Not something else. I need to take it as it is and realize this is the great moment in my life for nothing else is now. Make it what I want!
Basically this tells me to live life now, enjoy every little part of it, be observant not overlooking the small yet amazing stuff, remember, and be! It really makes me think of us too...
Ok so that is what I got out of the poem. Thanks for making me think. I am curious as to what you got out of it?
Love
"Starting here, what do you want to remember?"
To me this is asking me "what is your life worth to you thus far?" What do you want to be important? What matters about your life? Starting now means to me don't worry abou how its been done before or what will be important to you later but starting now, right now, what is important to you?
"How sunlight creeps along a shining floor?"
This question is challenging the first one by asking is it time that we want to remmber? Do want to remember how the hands ticked on the clock of time? It is also asking if I remember the beauty of things like the sunrise.
"What scent of old wood hovers, what softened sound from outside fills the air?"
What about the past? Can I remember how the flowers smelt or the trees in the forest or the smell that hits right before snow. Do I care to pay attention to these things?
"Will you ever bring a better gift for the world than the breathing respect that you carry wherever you go right now?"
This was a tough one to digest. Breathing respect? what the heck is that? Is it referring to will my impact on the world ever be any greater than taking in oxygen and give back Carbon Dioxide? The wherever I go right now part throws me off too because i would have thought this sentence be past tense. 99.99% of the time ewhen we reflect it is reflecting on the past whether it be something we said five seconds ago or five years ago. I think this is where he begins to challenge us to reflect on right now and how we live right now and our impact on the world at this very moment. What are we doing for the world right now? Sure we found a cure for cancer yesterday but what have we done today?
"Are you waiting for time to show you some better thoughts?"
Are we waiting for our situation to just magically become the way we would like it to be? I find myself often just waiting for the bad times to pass without doing anything to help that. I dont believe that Mr. Stafford believes it is a very smart thing to just wait it out.
The rest of this poem is illustrating the same idea in different ways to me. It is saying hold on to what you have got, live in the now, Do what you want, you have got to make it happen, and do it right now, don't wait.
I love the fact that after reading this I can't just say oh that was nice and forget about it. I am encouraged and almost required to change.
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