“Anxiety” Published!

In a previous post, I shared that I’ve been submitting poems to journals and that one journal has agreed to publish one of my poems. I’m happy to say that my poem “Anxiety” has been published in this month’s edition of Better than Starbucks. “Anxiety” uses the image of a spider and its prey toContinueContinue reading ““Anxiety” Published!”

Moving the Goal Posts

After self-publishing my first book of poems, The Wind and the Shadows, in December of 2020, I set a goal to self-publish a second book of poems in a year. It seemed like a challenging but do-able goal. In 2020, while praying, I felt prompted to be more intentional about writing poetry. Putting out aContinueContinue reading “Moving the Goal Posts”

A Fly Buzzed Me before It Died

Poets can take themselves too seriously. That’s why I enjoy reading, and sometimes writing, light verse. Humor—in life and in writing—helps us keep perspective. In a world too often caught in a morass of self-importance, a good laugh can be a life line. Awhile back, a fly buzzed past my face while I was brushingContinueContinue reading “A Fly Buzzed Me before It Died”

MCMXIV—Philip Larkin

One of the poets I’ve been reading lately is Philip Larkin (1922-1985). Larkin has many striking poems, but one that stands out to me is “MCMXIV”. MCMXIV is, of course, 1914 in Roman numerals. The title suggests the beginning of World War I. Larkin begins the poem by talking about long lines of men, thenContinueContinue reading “MCMXIV—Philip Larkin”

The Fence

The Fence is a poem I wrote in 2020. It’s about a fence (surprise, surprise) and the property behind it that I passed while walking to high school. It’s funny how mundane things imprint on our psyches. I can’t account for it except that it’s one way everything can point to ultimate meaning. Plato saidContinueContinue reading “The Fence”