Member-only story
Follow The Thread
The Way It Is
There’s a thread you follow.
It goes among things that change.
But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about
What you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it’s hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
Or die; and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.
— William Stafford
*
The Danger in Our Unlived Lives
Our “unlived lives,” which we may have accumulated over decades, take their revenge through our restless feelings of dissatisfaction, guilt over failing to live up to our hopes and dreams, emotional pain that undermines us, destructive habits, and even in our illnesses…In The Age of Anxiety, W. H. Auden says, “We would rather be ruined than changed. We would rather die in our dread than climb the cross of the moment and let our illusions die.”
— from Aging Strong by Bud Harris, PhD
*
