On Sorrow

This one has been sitting in my inbox for a while. It’s the 13th Century Persian, Hafiz (translated by Daniel Ladinsky). Thx to my friend Katharine for her post — I got the Hafiz poem there.

I’m drawn to the invitation inherent in this poem — to have a relationship with sorrow. Shame might be part of that relationship. But there is room for so much more. An inner and personal journey might be part of that relationship. But there is room for so much more when we recognize the universal nature of sorrow. We grow through our life’s experience. If we are lucky, with some good people to listen and reflect. If we are lucky, through a sorrow that teaches what we couldn’t otherwise know.

On sorrow…

It is not possible to complete yourself
without sorrow.

Sorrow is a vital ingredient that shapes
the heart and enriches it.

So endure sadness the best you can
when its season comes.

That rain that can fall from your eye
brings life to a field,

an on other days when you laugh,
a sun takes birth in a sky you will
someday know.

See how all the elements are inside of
you.

See how your soul is a sire of light.