Rooted in Beauty

This morning a friend sent this beautiful poem, by Naomi Shihab Nye:

The river is famous to the fish.

The loud voice is famous to silence,   
which knew it would inherit the earth   
before anybody said so.   

The cat sleeping on the fence is famous to the birds   
watching him from the birdhouse.   

The tear is famous, briefly, to the cheek.   

The idea you carry close to your bosom   
is famous to your bosom.   

The boot is famous to the earth,   
more famous than the dress shoe,   
which is famous only to floors.

The bent photograph is famous to the one who carries it   
and not at all famous to the one who is pictured.   

I want to be famous to shuffling men   
who smile while crossing streets,   
sticky children in grocery lines,   
famous as the one who smiled back.

I want to be famous in the way a pulley is famous,   
or a buttonhole, not because it did anything spectacular,   
but because it never forgot what it could do.

Gorgeous. It reminded me of a conversation I overheard between a tutor and a child. The tutor asked, “What would you do if you were famous?” and the child replied, “I don’t want to be famous… I just want to do my job! I don’t want to be stalked.”

A big move is coming up for me… I’m pretty excited. It will be so nice to be back in TO. Can’t wait to read by the lake, watch movies, read, do some writing, and return to my meditation.

I went to see the tulips yesterday at Dow’s Lake with my parents…. so beautiful. They were even better this year than last. Bright oranges, dark pinks and purples, light violets, and vibrant yellows laced the greens, with the shimmering lake in the background.

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It was hot. We saw the coolest tree, and I hopped on a branch and asked my dad to take a picture… he said in Gujarati, Don’t fall!

I want to be famous to the trees, who feel comfortable in my presence… as if they’re meeting an old friend… perhaps one not as rooted, but one who likes to wander from one sacred place to another. I want to be famous to the kids that walk by and smile, as if encountering a kindred soul. We got mint chocolate chip ice cream on our way home… the perfect outing. :-)

This morning I slept in, had my breakfast on the deck, and am sipping hot water with lemon and honey, ready to get outside. Hmmm is it noon already?

I’m happy that my vaccine is booked – it really does feel one step closer to normalcy.

Hope everyone is having a great Saturday!