Tonight, we decorated our Christmas tree as a family. Carols played from another room as we talked, laughed, and enjoyed adorning branches. But Christmas trees remind me of another tree, and the deeper meaning of Christmas: “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that, having died to sins, we mightContinue reading "Christmas Tree"
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
In my last post, I mentioned the snow is flying where I live. It snowed most of last night, and we woke to 5 or 6 inches of fresh, powdery snow. Keeping with the theme of snow, I thought I’d post a favorite Robert Frost poem, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.” This poemContinue reading "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"
Hourglass
Winter is officially here and, where I live, we have snow. In my house, it’s not uncommon to hear people break out in their own rendition of “Snow” from White Christmas. Anti-snow factions hate us 😆 A number of my poems are meditations on falling snow, something I never tire of watching. Last winter, weContinue reading "Hourglass"
Your Penney-Ante Speeches
Every so often, I just get in a mood and write a quirky poem whose origin even I don’t really understand. “Your Penney-Ante Speeches” is one such poem and appears in my first book of poems, The Wind and the Shadows. Even if I don’t know where it came from exactly, it’s blunt playfulness makesContinue reading "Your Penney-Ante Speeches"
At the Movies
I have been battling bronchitis for the past week, so I am dashing off a quick post featuring a poem I wrote about going to the movies. This poem is available in my second book, Event Horizon. At the Movies The screen flickers off, and the house lights come up. For two hours, we’ve watchedContinue reading "At the Movies"
Reading the Old Poets
I like all kinds of poetry—modern, medieval, formal, experimental, you name it. The only thing I haven’t read much of is epic poetry because I like shorter poems. Admittedly, I gravitate to free verse in my writing because of the immediacy of expression: I can focus on imagery and wording without considering whether something willContinue reading "Reading the Old Poets"
2047 Grace Street—Christian Wiman
I don’t remember how she heard about him, but my wife introduced me to Christian Wiman, and played a recording of him reading his poem, “All My Friends are Finding New Beliefs.” Wiman is a Christian, but I doubt he would fit in anyone’s theological box. His seems a very searching faith whose hunger forContinue reading "2047 Grace Street—Christian Wiman"
Costumes
Tomorrow is Hallowe’en, and at my house pumpkins are carved and costumes are (mostly) ready. Like runners on blocks, we are taut and ready to burst into a candy-eating sprint. Below is a poem I wrote last Hallowe’en entitled “Costumes.” It appeared in my second book, Event Horizon. For fun, I’ve also posted a coupleContinue reading "Costumes"
The State of Mercury
Back in May, my poem, “The Vineyard,” was published in Heart of Flesh Literary Journal. Through Heart of Flesh’s editor, Veronica McDonald, I learned about chapbooks. A chapbook is a short book of poems (usually 20-40). Often, the poems touch a single theme. In the next few months, I plan to self-publish a chapbook calledContinue reading "The State of Mercury"
Sing a Song of Sickness
More than 30 years ago now, I was thinking about the nursery rhyme, “Sing a Song of Sixpence” when a variation of the opening lines went through my head: “Sing a song of sickness / a pocketful of why”. The philosophic overtones of this variant juxtaposed with the sing-song feel of the nursery rhyme intriguedContinue reading "Sing a Song of Sickness"
A Wandering Minstrel 