The solitude of suffering

There is the solitude of suffering, when you go through darkness that is lonely, intense, and terrible. Words become powerless to express your pain; what others hear from your words is so distant and different from what you are actually suffering. ― John O’Donohue from Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom

And yet, this experience John O’Donohue speaks of is universal enough that most people understand these words.

A dear friend (soul-sister) sent me the book the above quote comes from. Anam Cara refers to the Celtic spiritual belief of souls connecting and bonding.

John O’Donohue is a wonderful poet. I’ve shared the below video before. Beautiful to listen to. Words beneath the video.

_________________
On the day when
the weight deadens
on your shoulders
and you stumble,
may the clay dance
to balance you.
And when your eyes
freeze behind
the grey window
and the ghost of loss
gets in to you,
may a flock of colours,
indigo, red, green,
and azure blue
come to awaken in you
a meadow of delight.

When the canvas frays
in the currach of thought
and a stain of ocean
blackens beneath you,
may there come across the waters
a path of yellow moonlight
to bring you safely home.

May the nourishment of the earth be yours,
may the clarity of light be yours,
may the fluency of the ocean be yours,
may the protection of the ancestors be yours.
And so may a slow
wind work these words
of love around you,
an invisible cloak
to mind your life.

John O’Donohue

More by John O’Donohue:

●  To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings

●  Four Elements: Reflections on Nature

●  Eternal Echoes: Celtic Reflections on Our Yearning to Belong