Mary Oliver #3- "Gethsemane"

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 This poem is definitely my favorite of the three Mary Oliver poem's that I have found thus far. For those who are not religious, the Garden of Gethsemane is the place in which Jesus went to pray after the Last Supper on the night before his crucifixion. It is in this garden that he pleads with the Lord to take the cup of burden from Him, all the while saying that Thy will be done, and it is also in this garden that Jesus is betrayed by Judas Iscariot. This poem describes the idea that although Jesus asked the disciples to wait with Him and they continued sleeping, the nature of the garden, the beauty of the flowers and grass around him, likely kept Him company and gathered around him in that moment. It is easy to remember that the Lord made us as humans, and the world, but it is easy to forget that He also made everything blade of grass, the wind, the sky, the stars, all of it. It makes me smile thinking of Jesus taking solace in creation in His last moments on earth. I was particularly struck by the line "knowing this too must be a part of the story", because it reminds the reader that although it is sad to think of humans sleeping through Jesus's pain, it was a crucial part of the bigger story of grace and redemption. This poem reminded me of one of the most beautiful gardens I have ever seen: the rose garden in Retiro Park in Madrid, Spain. We waited all cold winter for the flowers bloom, and got to experience their brilliance in our last week abroad. It makes me smile thinking of Jesus amongst these flowers. 

Retiro Park, May 2023

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