Sometimes A Poem Saves You

Life is full of distractions. Too often we allow the shoulds, as my friend Mimi calls them, to rob us of time that could be better spent.

Making space for the things I really want to do is challenging. I want to eat healthfully, sleep eight hours, and add movement to my life to feel well. I am not independently wealthy so there is a living to earn, which tends to take the majority of my time. And family time is essential.

Lately I’ve gotten sidetracked. Distractions creep into my life at a slow pace, and then I find myself saying, “What happened?”

I’ve discovered that I like to read poetry, especially poems by Mary Oliver and David Whyte. But I recently stumbled across a poem by Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks:

Invitation

Sometimes you hear a voice through

the door calling you, as fish out of

water hear the waves or a hunting

falcon hears the drum’s come back.

This turning toward what you deeply love

saves you.

It is time for me to reclaim my time and get back in my studio to paint! I am excited to rearrange my priorities and tap into some creativity that has been brewing.