Good morning! Today I wanted to share inspiration from a different source: poetry. I love poetry and usually read a poem every night before bed. Last night’s poem stuck with me, and I wanted to share it with you. I hope you enjoy!
The parents of three young birds got shot
by a hunter.
After a few days of no food the two largest
birds killed their brother; they ate him and
picked at his bones for a week.
Then that hunger we have all known set in
again, which would cause many to do most
anything, if that ache did last; and it did
and thus other wings never climbed into
the air.
A few more nights passed, and then it was at
sunrise the lone bird fell from its nest, though
it survived on the ground eating some ants,
and then one day it did fly.
Its song came to please many ears, its beauty
enhanced the eye of those who saw it. Even a
loving parent it became.
The guards at the gate of heaven are such
good friends of mine, you should know
there is nothing you have ever done that is
not innocent and will in any way be judged as
wrong by anyone of true wisdom
but such knowledge you will not be able to
accept until your and an angel’s ways are
more similar. It just works like that.
-Hafiz, translated by Daniel Ladinsky
The second to last stanza is the one that stuck with me. It holds a grain of truth that I find beautiful - there is nothing you have ever done that is not innocent. How would it be if we genuinely experienced life as a place to learn. Where we are all children, doing our best to survive and thrive. Often bumping into each other and causing hurt. Sure, there are some times when the hurt is not done from an innocent blunder but with calculation. I would argue those instances are the exception, both in an individual’s life and in the population. Most of us are simply doing our best with the skills and knowledge we’ve gained so far. So cut yourself and your partner(s) some slack! We’re all attempting to fly and bring beauty to the world. For me, this poem is a reminder of forgiveness. For myself and others.