Wild Turkeys

Mary Oliver wrote in her beloved poem, Wild Geese; "The world offers itself to your imagination." You can hear a recording of Mary Oliver reading it below.

During my stay at Quill Nook Farm in Vermont, Wild turkeys have sparked my imagination. Mesmerized, I have watched a rafter of wild turkeys as it forages in the fields at dusk. They move together clucking short notes to one another while they find fruit, acorns, insects, seeds, and even small reptiles for their evening meal.

Here's a short clip of yesterday's visit.

Wild Geese

You do not have to be good.

You do not have to walk on your knees

For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.

You only have to let the soft animal of your body

love what it loves.

Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.

Meanwhile the world goes on.

Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain

are moving across the landscapes,

over the prairies and the deep trees,

the mountains and the rivers.

Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,

are heading home again.

Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,

the world offers itself to your imagination,

calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --

over and over announcing your place

in the family of things.

Published in “New and Selected Poems, Volume One” (Beacon Press; Reprint edition. April 15, 2004) page 110.