Tenderness and attention

“The root of the word “attention” is the Latin ad tendere which means ”to stretch towards.“ Tendere, or “stretch,” comes from a Proto-Indo-European root “ten-” with the same meaning, "to stretch.” Many other words share this root, but amongst them is of course the word “tender.” 

As the poet Mary Oliver writes,
“Attention is the beginning of devotion.”

As Octavio Paz puts it, “the heart is an eye.”

To love is to offer attention and tenderness in outstretched hand.

“everything is important.”

If we allow wonder to guide us without trapping it into meaning, our attention, our noticing, becomes expansive.

In the midst of a flood, consider the colour of the water.

“To pay attention / this is our endless and proper work.”

To stretch persistently towards careful attention and stubborn tenderness can be laborious but it is also necessary work.”

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"All the Tenderness of Attention" by Sharon Neema.

Full article available at Are.na