embracing the within

12

Too much brightness blinds the eyes.

Too much sound deafens the ears.

Too much flavour ruins the tongue.

Chasing desires to excess turns your mind towards madness,
and valuing precious things impairs good judgment.

The wise are guided by inner needs,
and are not concerned with the senses.
Therefore the wise person rejects the without,
while embracing the within.

— Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, translated by Robert Brookes

Sometimes, When the Light

Sometimes, when the light strikes at odd angles,
and pulls you back into childhood

and you are passing a crumbling mansion
completely hidden behind old willows

or an empty convent guarded by hemlocks
and giant firs standing hip to hip,

you know again that behind that wall,
under the uncut hair of the willows

something secret is going on,
so marvelous and dangerous

that if you crawled through and saw,
you would die, or be happy forever.

— Lisel Mueller