It doesn't interest me

What you do for a living.

I want to know what you ache for,

And if you dare to dream

Of meeting your hearts' desire.

It doesnt interest me how old you are.

I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool

For love, for your dreams,

For the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me

What planets are squaring your moon.

I want to know

If you have touched the center of your sorrow,

If you have been opened by lifes' betrayals,

Or have become shrivled and closed

For the fear of future pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain,

Mine or your own,

Without moving to hide it, fade it, or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with Joy,

Mine or your own,

If you can dance with wilderness

And let ecstacy fill you

To the tips of your fingers and toes

Without cautioning us

To be careful, to be realistic,

Or to remember the limitations

Of human beings.

I want to know if you can see beauty,

And if you can source your life from its presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure,

And still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the moon,

"Yes!"

It doesn't interest me

Where you live, or how much money you have.

I want to know if you can get up after a night of despair,

Weary and bruised to the bone,

And do what needs to be done for the children.

It doesnt interest me

Who you are or how you came to be here

I want to know if you will stand

In the center of the fire with me

And not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me

Where or what or with whom you have studied.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself,

And if you truly like the company you keep

In the empty moments.

I want to know what sustains you

When all else falls away...

-Oriah Mountain Dreamer

"The Invitation"