My Mary Oliver Poems #6 - “Yes! No!”

How necessary is it to have opinions! I think the spotted trout

Lilies are satisfied, standing a few inches above the earth. I

Think serenity is not something you just find in the world,

Like a plum tree, holding up its white petals.


The violets, along the river, are opening their blue faces, like

Small dark lanterns.


The green mosses, being so many, are as good as brawny.


How important it is to walk along, not in haste but slowly,

Looking at everything and calling out


Yes! No! The


Swan, for all his pomp, his robes of glass and petals, wants

Only to be allowed to live on the nameless pond. The catbrier

Is without fault. The water thrushes, down among the sloppy

Rocks, are going crazy with happiness. Imagination is better

Than a sharp instrument. To pay attention, this our endless

And proper work.

I found “Yes! No!” to be a fitting conclusion to my reflections on Mary Oliver’s Devotions. As I walked through Devotions, this particular devotion caught my eye because it seemed to capture the spirit of our class perfectly: “to pay attention” as is our “endless and proper work,” knowing “how important it is to walk along, hot in haste but slowly, looking at everything and calling out Yes! No!” As always, Oliver’s deft observation of the detail of the world around her inspired and invigorated me; the satisfied spotted trout lilies swaying in the breeze, the serene plum tree showing off white petals, the solitary creature of the swan enjoying his nameless pond. I also saw a connection between this devotion and a quote by Thoreau that we discussed in the early days of our class: “Everyone must believe in something. I believe I’ll go canoeing.” Oliver’s devotion to the beautiful, detailed, alive corner of the world that she enjoys so deeply reminded me of Thoreau’s quote. At the outset of the poem, she reminds us how necessary it is to have opinions; at the end of the poem, she reminds us that imagination is better than a sharp instrument. Hers seems to be a reflection of finding meaning, beauty, and deep appreciation in everything in the natural world around her; nothing seems to escape her eye.




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