In America, Timothy O’Brien, SJ, writes about the poet and memoirist Mary Karr about the Spiritual Exercises and Ignatian spirituality: “If you live in New York City, where it’s 105 degrees, I have to walk out of this apartment wondering where I’m going to be of service.”
I’ve written about Mary Karr before. Her memoir Lit is a great story of recovery and spiritual awakening. Her poetry is searing in its intensity. Here are a few lines from her poem “Disgraceland:”
Eventually, I lurched out
to kiss the wrong mouths, get stewed,
and sulk around. Christ always stood
to one side with a glass of water.
Read the rest of the poem here.
That’s poetry?
Absolutely amazing poem. I really appreciate learning of Mary Karr – I read more after this poem.
I realized before I went to bed last night that “Finding God in all things” also means finding JOY in all things. Thank you very much for this post. 🙂
Powerful poem. It speaks of the truth and the reality that most of us experience. I wasn’t aware of her writings but thank you for introducing such a wonderful writer.