Compound Gratitude 

 

In my last newsletter, I shared Part One about the times of dreams awaking.  This little missive is a long overdue Part Two. 
 
Those dreams did come true, as represented by the photos above, which show my now-husband and I at our Saint Patrick’s Day housewarming party this March. 
 
Since I last wrote:
 
1. I married this great guy
 
2. We built a house (Jared is a stonemason, and he made the brick fireplace behind us)
 
3. My poetry collection Hope of Stones won the Oregon Book Award, and I heard about it right there in our new living room. 
 
A big batch of goodness, yes. But it wasn’t all peaches and cream. These photos also illustrate another adventure: how my husband and I are learning to be married. The friend who took the photos tried repeatedly to catch us both looking at the camera at the same time. I like to think she captured our learning process—which, of course, I've been writing about. 
 
You might have noticed that this newsletter is far more personal than usual—I’m warming myself up for an upcoming non-fiction project about—drumroll—the first year of marriage. Stay tuned….
 
Since I’ve been working on that book, I haven’t been writing much poetry, but I can feel it wanting to come out and play. So for this Thanksgiving season, I’m sharing again the poem, “Compound Gratitude.” Since writing it five years ago, I’ve learned a lot about gratitude. And marriage has taught me even more—it’s the ultimate compounding! 
 
Blessings to you in this season of gratitude, and thank you for reading,
 
Anna

 
Compound Gratitude
 
Thank you for the eye and the sight
     for the ear and the drum
     for the finger and the nail
     for the under and the belly
     for the back and the bone
     for the hand and the made
     for the heart and the ache.
 
Thank you for the moon and the light
     for the sun and the flower
     for the rattle and the snake
     for the thunder and the storm
     for the star and the fish
     for the song and the bird
     for the honey and the suckle.
 
Thank you for the day and the dream
     for the good and the night
     for the after and the noon
     for the cross and the over
     for the up and the coming
     for the life and the time
     for the thanks and the giving.
 

If you'd like to catch up, I post monthly on the Wordbody blog.    
And you can find the newsletter archive here.