Mary Oliver's Owls and Other Fantasies

                                              This is my copy of Owls and Other Fantasies on the arm of my Adirondack chair on front porch in Mississippi

 I first heard of Mary Oliver when I was a U.S. Army first lieutenant serving in Iraq. A friend back home who knew of my bookwormish tendencies thoughtfully sent me a copy of her "Owls and Other Fantasies: Poems and Essays", and I became hooked.

Her descriptions of quiet, pastoral settings really moved me, and her contemplations on how they related to life provided much needed mental escapes for a few moments at a time, when I needed them the most.

 As a kid I'd been an avid bird watcher, and her descriptions of sitting quietly in a meadow to watch hummingbirds, or walking through a pine thicket to see her old friend the nighthawk were wonderful.

Like British soldiers who stuffed copies of Adrian Bell's "Corduroy" into their knapsacks before going abroad in the Second World War to remind them of home, "Owls and Other Fantasies" whisked me right out of the hot, arid Middle Eastern desert and back to my warm, muggy, rural Mississippi home.

 Depending on the poem, perhaps it would be a late summer evening out by the tree line at the edge of the property where the lighting bugs hung out, or maybe a chilly, crisp spring morning watching a kingfisher dive into the water over at Mr Ledlow's pond while I baited a hook to do my own, less spectacular style of fishing.

Writing this with my military service well over a over a decade behind me, I still take time during busy moments to read about things like "goldfinches...having a melodious argument at the edge of a puddle." It still has the same effect

Ms Mary is no longer with us, but if I could meet her, I'd tell her thank you.


(You can get your own copy of "Owls and Other Fantasies" at this affiliate link: )https://amzn.to/3wtZ6VR


Location: Columbus, MS, USA

Comments

  1. J.D. SutterMay 8, 2024 at 12:44 PM

    I'll have to check it out. To be frank, most modern poets don't resonate with me like the classics do so don't often venture in without a recommendation.

    ReplyDelete

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