Compass of the heart

“It is the wilderness in the mind, the desert wastes in the heart, through which one wanders lost and a stranger. When one is a stranger to oneself, then one is estranged from others, too. If one is out of touch with oneself, then one cannot touch others.” ~Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Gift from the Sea

Anne Morrow Lindbergh earned her reputation as a fearless aviator and explorer. At the same time, the diaries and books she wrote were maps of her emotional journey. In her nonfiction classic, Gift from the Sea, Lindbergh charted new ways to navigate the challenging terrain of marriage, work, and motherhood. Written and published in the 1950s, the small book of meditations was ahead of its time.

As Lindbergh reminded us, we can lose ourselves in our efforts to please or serve others. With that in mind, she underscored the need for women to make time and space for nurturing their own creative work. ~CL

To read an essay I wrote about Gift from the Sea in Metro Parent, click here.