Fly by Night

There is a man who haunts the forest,

that hangs odes upon hawthorns and elegies

On brambles.

-William Shakespeare, As You Like It, Act III, Scene 2

"Fly by Night" ink on paper by Maurice Sendak 1976

He was not conscientiously a nocturnal being, and yet, in his dreams, he was such a creature. He had no fear of the night for he was aware of the watchful eyes of a benevolent owl, and he moved by the light of the moon. He became acquainted with the veiled sights of the night and with the varied sounds of cats, crickets, coyotes, and other nocturnal beings. He often felt like he was floating naked above them so that his ethereal presence was a solace to them all.

The pastoral property over which he presided was shared with a shepherdess, a matron, and their offspring, and together they managed to provide themselves with the necessities of life.

Through his observations, he wisely concluded that he was no better than the creatures around him, that he had no dominion over them, and in fact, when he needed guidance, he looked to them for inspiration.

His daily prayer went something like this:

The World is my Shepherdess, I shall not want.

She watches me float above green pastures.

She leads me beside still waters,

She restores my soul.

Though I travel through the valleys of death,

I will fear no evil: for She is with me.

Her staff comforts me. She prepares a table for me,

My cup is filled, and my clothes are spun from the finest wool.

As long as I remain wise, Wild Things will guide me,

And the World will shepherd me, and bring me peace.

CPW

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair grows in me

and I wake in the middle of the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake

rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into the peace of wild things

who do not tax their lives with forethought

of grief. I come into the presence of still water. And I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

-Wendell Berry