A gardener of the spirit, Eleanore Marie Sarton (1912–1995) was born on this day in Wondelgem, Belgium. A poet, novelist, and journal writer, she moved with her family to England and then the U.S. following the outbreak of World War I. She began publishing poetry at age 17.

“In the country of pain we are each alone,” she wrote. For a time, Sarton taught creative writing and reviewed books to support her career as a poet.

She spoke to the spirit of her readers—as a friend, a mirror, and confidant. With quiet candor and creativity, her words honored life and relationship.

About her craft, she once advised, “If you want to read poets, read what you find nourishing. Don’t read what you think is fashionable. Be like an animal searching for food—something you can truly digest.”

Critics have praised the passion and insight of her words. Sheila Ballantyne called Sarton “a seeker of truth with a kind of awesome energy for renewal, an ardent explorer of life’s deepest questions.”

She wrote over 30 volumes of poetry and fiction, and is best remembered for her journals, chronicling life in a solitary home along the Maine coast. In her eloquent novel *Mrs. Stevens Hears the Mermaids Singing* (1972), she examined the artist’s calling and a woman’s truth.

Sarton saw her life as “a timeless ascent” toward “more light.” She wrote of love, solitude, and self-knowledge, and believed deeply: “We have to believe that every person counts—as a creative force who can move mountains.”