‘I Worried’ is a personal poem written by Mary Oliver about the universal experience of overthinking and anxiety.
We designed an abstract visual poem based on our own interpretation of Oliver’s message.
We interpreted the poem to be more positive, as Oliver seems to answer her own questions in the last stanza. We interpreted the line about “taking her old body…and singing” as freedom from her worries by choosing to focus on life, creation, and beauty.
We depicted this full-circle ending through the flower garden. Initially, the poem asks if the garden will ever bloom, and in the end it’s revealed this worry was unfounded, as it had deep, unyielding roots the entire time.