But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice,
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do the only thing you could do -
determined to save
the only life you could save.

(From "The Journey")

In a very on-brand move, one of the first stops in our recent Las Vegas trip was @thewritersblocklv, a wonderful spot in downtown Vegas. Billed as a "book shop, coffee shop, writers' workshop, and artificial bird sanctuary," I couldn't resist. It was utterly delightful to wander around the store with a chai latte and browse. There were SO MANY funny bird things around, including a wide variety of artificial birds in various themed displays throughout the shop.

I decided to buy this poetry collection by Mary Oliver because I have been looking for a book by her at various used book stores, but to no avail. I admit that I read through the tables of content of every book of hers to make sure I got one with "Wild Geese." It's a lovely little book, and I finished it while I was in Manhattan for work. I had almost nonstop meetings for 2.5 days, and reading these quiet, steady poems about nature and contemplation was just the thing to start and end my days.