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Mary Oliver was an American poet whose work centered almost entirely on the natural world and the quiet courage required to pay attention to it. She won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, yet lived simply and relatively privately in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Her poetry consistently found the extraordinary in the ordinary — a grasshopper, a morning walk, a wild goose — and asked readers to consider what it means to be truly alive.

National High Five Day and Stress Awareness Day make for an interesting pairing — one celebrating triumph, one acknowledging the weight people carry. Oliver’s words hold both at once. The high fives worth giving are earned through difficulty. Stress isn’t something to be ashamed of; it’s evidence that you’re attempting something that matters. This quote doesn’t dismiss hard times — it makes them mean something.