# Attention is the beginning of devotion.... | Mary Oliver Quote

> Source: https://positivity.org/quotes/quote-mary-oliver-attention-is-the-beginning-of

> Attention is the beginning of devotion.

## What This Quote Means

When we pay attention to the present, we discover beauty and meaning we previously overlooked.

## About Mary Oliver

Mary Oliver was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American poet known for her clear, accessible poems about nature and the spiritual world.

Mary Oliver (1935-2019) was a poet who found spiritual truth in close observation of the natural world and shared it in clear, luminous verse.

## How to Apply This Wisdom

### Mindful breathing

Take three conscious breaths before starting any new activity.

### Single-tasking

Do one thing at a time with full attention.

### Body awareness

Check in with your physical sensations several times throughout the day.

## Reflection Questions

- How present am I in my daily activities?

- What am I missing by not paying full attention?

- When do I feel most fully alive and aware?

## More Quotes by Mary Oliver

> Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?

> Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this too, was a gift.

> Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.

> Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable.

> You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.