Blue Iris

"For there I am, in the mossy shadow, under the trees."  Mary Oliver finds complete remembrance and comfort in the shadows of nature.  Against ambition's suggestion to leave, her mind and body is at ease when holding "the wrists of idleness."  Writing and coming up with lyrics for poems can not entirely fulfill her like the presence of the black oaks or the bleeding-heart plants.

Throughout Oliver's poems and essays, she focuses on the changing of seasons.  "Not tenderness, not longing, but daring and brawn pull down the frozen waterfall, the past."  The ice or past is overcome by the strength and the risk to move forward.  The frozen pond is melting - winter to spring; death to life - and with the coming of spring comes beauty and life.  She points out the minute details and wants to appreciate the smaller things in life, like her grandmother did.  We tend to get caught up and stressed out over uncontrollable dealings in life when we just need to slow down and breathe.  Take a look around and embrace our natural world.  As Oliver reflects on the "glossy bush, with many small red hearts dangling" that never miss a spring, we need to analyze our shifts and changes.  "What blazes the trail is not necessarily pretty."  Life's trail or journey is never absolute beauty, but there are stops along the way that stand out making the trip well worth the struggles.

"One day they tear the surface, the next they break open over the dark water."  Oliver depicts the struggle of the lilies breaking through "that mud-hive."  Giving the lilies human qualities, she shows the battle between the two.  "The fists crack open," as if relaxing from a fighting position, readying themselves for a beautiful bloom.  From a seasonal slumber or death the lilies are born again.  As in her other poems, Oliver breaks for a moment of reflection or thought.  "Slippery and wild," the lilies are tough to hold a certain meaning; the lily symbolizes many different ideas (birth, purity, devotion, wealth, death).  Just as the lilies are urged to bloom every summer, Oliver notes that people must break free from the baggage of the past; we must move forward with every coming season.

"The Lilies Break Open Over the Dark Water" touched home to me most.  I feel the pressures of life weighing me down; the leeches' of authority trying to suck the life out of me.  Like the "reeking leaf-yard Oliver describes.  There are times when I want to associate a meaning to something, but "they are devoid of a meaning."  Certain things may just happen, because they are supposed to happen.  Sorrowing over the uncontrollable is a waste of time.  This fight allows for brief moments or seasons of rejoice and reward.  The one day that I tear the surface is when I can thrive in the moment and flourish in bloom over the dark water.

And before my amble to the bus
She catches my arm,
While I dream of daisies and roses -
For which my neighbors' gardens provide -
To pick for the girl on the bus,
Lunch and a kiss on the cheek Mom provides.
She opens my hand
And drops three furry, red-veined leaves.
The smell of mint captures my palm,
Even after they dip into my pocket.
Fresh streams from which they grew
Ripple through my mind,
As I lose track of my lovely plan.