Rilke: On Living the Questions

Our kitchen is almost finished but it’s been days since I’ve seen the stove.   And now today, when it looked like this would never end, here we go: The finish line is in sight.

Yesterday when we painted the kitchen, I took a picture of the paint before the yellowish tan was covered. There’s a bird in a snow storm. Under the paint now, but we know it’s there.

This is the only piece I’ve been able to work on since the house became a zone of disorder. It’s helped me remain sane. And it reflects winter in the Smokey Mountains–this year with lots of rain–replenishing aquifers. But lots of grey skies as well. I’m needing sunshine now. And a little sense of order–just for a day or so.

And finally, as an added bonus to the day this Rilke quote just arrived from a dear, dear friend:

“Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now.” (Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet, 1934)

Tags: living the question, patience, Rilke