17 Quotes by Jane Kenyon

The poet's job is to put into words those feelings we all have that are so deep, so important, and yet so difficult to name, to tell the truth in such a beautiful way, that people cannot live without it.

To the bottle in the ditch, to the scoopin the oats, to air in the lunglet evening come.Let it come, as it will, and don'tbe afraid. God does not leave uscomfortless, so let evening come.

And I knew thenthat I would have to live, and go on living: what sorrow it was;and still what sorrow ignitesbut does not consume my heart.

And from that day oneverything under the sun and moonmade me sad—

All day the blanket snapped and swelledon the line, roused by a hot spring wind....From there it witnessed the first sparrow,early flies lifting their sticky feet,and a green haze on the south-sloping hills.Clouds rose over the mountain....At duskI took the blanket in, and we slept,restless, under its fragrant weight.

Be a good steward of your gifts. Protect your time. Feed your inner life. Avoid too much noise. Read good books, have good sentences in your ears. Be by yourself as often as you can. Walk. Take the phone off the hook. Work regular hours.

If it’s darkness we’re having, let it be extravagant.

I am the one whose love overcomes you, already with you when you think to call my name.

There’s just no accounting for happiness, or the way it turns up like a prodigal who comes back to the dust at your feet having squandered a fortune far away.