Sophia Efthimiatou (@sophia): "Mary Oliver’s “The Uses of Sorrow” infuriated me for years. Then one day I went, Oh. The Uses of Sorrow (In my sleep I dreamed this poem) Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this, too, was a gift."

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Sophia Efthimiatou

Mary Oliver’s “The Uses of Sorrow” infuriated me for years. Then one day I went, Oh.

The Uses of Sorrow

(In my sleep I dreamed this poem)

Someone I loved once gave me

a box full of darkness.

It took me years to understand

that this, too, was a gift.

I’m not advocating for spiritual bypassing, by which we slap a demented smiley face sticker on our griefs and hardships. I am gently offering that if we can suspend our judgement, putting a bit of space between the plot of our lives and our running commentary, something miraculous happens

Feb 1, 2024

at

4:23 AM

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