The poem I need most this time of year
It’s that time of the year: the time when I need to carry my favorite poem in my pocket and read it frequently. I do this to inoculate myself against the fantasies that come up about now. Not Christmas fantasies of sugar plums dancing in my head—New Year’s fantasies.
As a new year approaches I begin to imagine that I will finally grab the reins of my life and get things under control. Thomas Aquinas prayed, “Put my life in good order, O my God.” This time of year I start conceiving how I will put my life in good order.
Here’s how it begins: I enter Barnes & Noble to finish my Christmas shopping, but before I can walk to the children’s section to find the perfect puppet for my daughter, I see the conspicuously displayed table of self-help books. I’ve never met a self-help book I didn’t like. Instantly, I’ve forgotten the puppet as I mindlessly peruse books like The Mindful Diet. Yes, I think, this might be the one to help me put my life in order next year.
