In Praise of the Earth Let us bless The imagination of the Earth. That knew early the patience To harness the mind of time, Waited for the seas to warm, Ready to welcome the emergence Of things dreaming of voyaging Among the stillness of land. And how light knew to nurse The growth until the face of the Earth Brightened beneath a vision of color. When the ages of ice came And sealed the Earth inside An endless coma of cold, The heart of the Earth held hope, Storing fragments of memory, Ready for the return of the sun. Let us thank the Earth That offers ground for home And holds our feet firm To walk in space open To infinite galaxies. Let us salute the silence And certainty of mountains: Their sublime stillness, Their dream-filled hearts. The wonder of a garden Trusting the first warmth of spring Until its black infinity of cells Becomes charged with dream; Then the silent, slow nurture Of the seed’s self, coaxing it To trust the act of death. The humility of the Earth That transfigures all That has fallen Of outlived growth. The kindness of the Earth, Opening to receive Our worn forms Into the final stillness. Let us ask forgiveness of the Earth For all our sins against her: For our violence and poisonings Of her beauty. Let us remember within us The ancient clay, Holding the memory of seasons, The passion of the wind, The fluency of water, The warmth of fire, The quiver-touch of the sun And shadowed sureness of the moon. That we may awaken, To live to the full The dream of the Earth Who chose us to emerge And incarnate its hidden night In mind, spirit, and light. ~ John O’Donohue ~ (To Bless the Space Between Us)
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