May 4, 2017

"Famous."

I found this poem in the book I'm reading, Hallelujah, Anyway, by my ever-favorite Anne Lamott. Anne didn't write the poem, and neither did I, though I suspect we both wish we had  

***

The river is famous to the fish.

The loud voice is famous to the silence,
which knew it would inherit the earth
before anybody said so.

The cat sleeping on the fence is famous to the birds
watching him from the birdhouse.

The tear is famous, briefly, to the cheek.

The idea you carry close to your bosom
is famous to your bosom.

The boot is famous to the earth,
more famous than the dress shoe,
which is famous only to the floors.

The bent photograph is famous to the one who carries it,
and not at all famous to the one who is pictured.

I want to be famous to shuffling men
who smile while crossing streets,
sticky children in grocery lines,
famous as the one who smiled back.

I want to be famous in the way a pulley is famous,
or a buttonhole, not because it did anything spectacular,

but because it never forgot what it could do.

~ Naomi Shihab Nye

 

Hallelujah, Anyway
Anne Lamott

One comment on “"Famous."”

THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU

NOW AVAILABLE
thisbookisforyouthumb

JUST. YOU. WAIT.

NOW AVAILABLE
Just-You-Wait-COVER-resized
#1 New Title on Amazon in Christian Inspiration

YOU CAN DO THIS

NOW AVAILABLE
you-can-do-this
#1 New Title on Amazon in Women's Issues!

LET'S PRETEND WE'RE NORMAL

NOW AVAILABLE
Lets-Pretend-Were-Normal
#1 Bestseller on Amazon in Single Parenting

AND LIFE COMES BACK

NOW AVAILABLE
and-life-comes-back
#1 in Denver Post: Nonfiction Paperback and Finalist for 2015 Christian Book Award
© 2015-2023 Tricia Lott Williford. All Rights Reserved. Site by Concept To Web.
crossmenu
linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram
%d bloggers like this: