Often I have to remind myself there are many kinds of poets. When a poem dazzles me, it’s easy to throw shade on my own work, to feel drab next to their shine. Dylan Thomas is one of my favorite poets, if not my absolute favorite. That said, I doubt I’ve understood two of hisContinueContinue reading “Poetry’s Bouquet”
Category Archives: The Wind and the Shadows
Robin
I like poems whose impact is immediate and deep; poems that encapsulate strong feelings and ideas in a moment of imagery or action. I suppose that’s why I gravitate toward short poems. Many times, the things I decide to write about happen in a flash, a moment where the mundane becomes metaphor. It’s made meContinueContinue reading “Robin”
Cobwebs
“Imagination is funny It makes a cloudy day sunny It makes a bee think of honey Just as I think of you.” So goes the song popularized by Frank Sinatra. But imagination works the other way too. Pathological imagination often presents as fear and anxiety. This is what inspired “Cobwebs,” which appeared in my firstContinueContinue reading “Cobwebs”
Frames of Dust
Feelings are like precious metals mingled and trapped in rocks. They’re not always valuable in their raw form. They must be processed and refined to become something beautiful. Writing poems has provided many writers a way to process and refine emotions. My own poems reflect all sorts of states: worship, whimsy, rage, rapture…poems are passionContinueContinue reading “Frames of Dust”
Third Time’s a Charm…
I am grateful to announce that my poem, “The Vineyard,” will appear in Heart of Flesh Literary Journal, issue seven, 5/6/22! This makes three poems published in two different journals. “The Vineyard” is a free-verse poem made up of four quintains (five-line stanzas). It is more or less a meditation on the kingdom of GodContinueContinue reading “Third Time’s a Charm…”
The Difference Is the t
As a Christian, Jesus is a very real presence in my life and writing. Spirituality isn’t the only subject I write about, but it is the backdrop for everything I think or pen. Christians believe every person born has good and evil hopelessly combined within. It is like a cup of water that someone hasContinueContinue reading “The Difference Is the t”
Valentine’s Day 2017
This May, I will have been married 23 years. Over the years, I’ve written a number of poems for my wife. (Can you really be a poet without a few love poems lurking about? LOL). When my wife and I were married, we chose to use the traditional vows. While these might seem hackneyed toContinueContinue reading “Valentine’s Day 2017”
Wildfires
The past 20 years, horrific wildfires seem to have become the rule rather than the exception in the United States. My home state of Washington has lost hundreds of thousands of acres to fires. I live in a valley. During fire season, smoke often floods our valley and is gets trapped by our surrounding hills.ContinueContinue reading “Wildfires”
Shapely Poems
Shape poems or visual poems arrange text to form pictures. With some shape poems, the picture formed by words is more important than what the words say. Others use the shape to emphasize the verbal content. One of the first shape poems I read is also one of the best known. “Easter Wings,” by GeorgeContinueContinue reading “Shapely Poems”
Janitor
Haiku is a Japanese poetic form I became acquainted with through the writings of JD Salinger. One of his recurring characters is Seymour Glass, and Seymour enjoys writing haikus. Haiku is a simple, three line form: a line of five syllables, a line of seven syllables, and a line of five syllables. Haiku began asContinueContinue reading “Janitor”
A Wandering Minstrel 