A celebration of the stillness of winter when, that is, we suddenly allow ourselves the silence to appreciate it. The ‘patience remembered’ is the bodily understanding that part of us knows how to wait, knows how to pay attention at a deeper level and knows how to be nourished by the taste and texture of what has silently grown and continues to grow naturally in our lives, without will or effort.in our lives. Winter apple… an experience of the full ripening of the year in a single bite. DW
The ability to let things alone to ripen in their own way. The daily practice of allowing things to become fully themselves and refusing to harvest any moment until it is fully ripe. To take time to dwell in the silence and darkness of winter where a full maturation always takes place just as our own understanding is ripened in the depths of sleep. To let those we love and live with radically alone to have their own voices and their own way of imagining the world. To let our colleagues and our fellow citizens alone to have their own lives. To feel the full nourishing benefit in the neglected art of waiting and witnessing…. DW
No snarkiness intended but while this makes sense (no wine before its time) - it also triggered a thought: when does ripening turn to rotting? When does patience, waiting, and acceptance turn toxic? I am also thinking of Snow White and the apple.
This is one of my favorite poems of all time by all poets. It becomes a meditation when read slowly several times, and for me it is transformative each time that I see it, tying me a little closer to the reality of my time here in this mystery called human being. I am grateful for it, and now finding it in today's Christmas stocking, I'm delighted!
This is such a lovely poem, David, that I have read often and always with joy..."find the pale nobility of quiet that ripening demands." How can one not take that into each living day
A celebration of the stillness of winter when, that is, we suddenly allow ourselves the silence to appreciate it. The ‘patience remembered’ is the bodily understanding that part of us knows how to wait, knows how to pay attention at a deeper level and knows how to be nourished by the taste and texture of what has silently grown and continues to grow naturally in our lives, without will or effort.in our lives. Winter apple… an experience of the full ripening of the year in a single bite. DW
The ability to let things alone to ripen in their own way. The daily practice of allowing things to become fully themselves and refusing to harvest any moment until it is fully ripe. To take time to dwell in the silence and darkness of winter where a full maturation always takes place just as our own understanding is ripened in the depths of sleep. To let those we love and live with radically alone to have their own voices and their own way of imagining the world. To let our colleagues and our fellow citizens alone to have their own lives. To feel the full nourishing benefit in the neglected art of waiting and witnessing…. DW
No snarkiness intended but while this makes sense (no wine before its time) - it also triggered a thought: when does ripening turn to rotting? When does patience, waiting, and acceptance turn toxic? I am also thinking of Snow White and the apple.
“So that a full
two months
after you
should have
taken the apple
down…”
The word “should” is interesting. -Dwight.
The images in this poem take me inward to taste:
" the sweet,
inward stillness
of the wait itself."
Thank you!
This is one of my favorite poems of all time by all poets. It becomes a meditation when read slowly several times, and for me it is transformative each time that I see it, tying me a little closer to the reality of my time here in this mystery called human being. I am grateful for it, and now finding it in today's Christmas stocking, I'm delighted!
The beauty and nourishment of silently witnessing. Thank you.
This is such a lovely poem, David, that I have read often and always with joy..."find the pale nobility of quiet that ripening demands." How can one not take that into each living day