Wild Geese by Mary Oliver

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting--
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

Moving Through Change

Being a freelancer, I'm accustomed to change. Clients come and go. My schedule varies from week to week. One day I'm in an office full of employees at a meeting, the next three weeks I'm flying solo in my office. One day I'm interviewing a doctor at the Mayo Clinic about natural supplements to lower cholesterol, the next day is spent on business like invoices and contracts

The freelance life isn't for everybody. But I am grateful for the flexibility, the spontaneity, and the unknowing-ness of it all. It makes me feel alive, and gives the illusion of freedom. I could be a day away from the biggest job of my life, or a black hole where the phone doesn't ring.

In the midst of this constantly changing schedule, I am thinking about the things that don't change, the things that add a rhythm and consistency to my days and weeks:

1. My morning cup of coffee.
2. The Sunday newspaper— Styles section first, then Week in Review, then Front Page, and Arts.
3. Dinner with my family.
4. A morning stretch and intention.

I'm holding on to these simple things amidst bigger changes; a new house, a new city, a new baby, a new routine, a new job opportunity. It's these things that keep me grounded, and steady.

Enjoy what changes, and what stays the same. For now.