There are moments—on the trail, in the quiet of a morning, or during some turning point in life—when a few lines can express something a whole book can’t. This space is for those moments. Each poem here is an attempt to capture what I was feeling, seeing, or trying to understand at the time. Some are inspired by nature, some by family, others by stirrings on the outskirts of conscious thought.
Of Meter and Rhyme
At the River
At the river, I found the movement I couldn’t see in life. The sounds and rhythm of a flow
that moves forward without losing its depth… [Read More →]
The Covered Bridge
At the river, I found the movement I couldn’t see in life. The sounds and rhythm of a flow
that moves forward without losing its depth… [Read More →]
On Georgiana Falls
At the river, I found the movement I couldn’t see in life. The sounds and rhythm of a flow
that moves forward without losing its depth… [Read More →]
Way Up There
Way up there, saddled in the breeze, nestled where most will never see, lies a lake, a christening pool,
a gift from Heaven, seems to me. [Read More →]
Those Summer Days of Autumn
In heart, we didn’t know, but she knew. With a sun like that, how could we know? Nothing ever happened to give us that creeping in our bones. [Read More →]
The Strings
Have you heard the words of youth, or merely waited them out to tell the story you’ve been trained to tell? The story that made you think you could someday be safe, but never stopped nibbling at the heart and at the mind? [Read More →]
On That Day
There may come a day, no, there will come a day, when you overcome something so unbelievable that you wouldn’t believe it yourself had it not happened to you. In time, you might not believe it either. [Read More →]
The Reasons
It’s not for the fantasy that at the table of martyrs, someone will acknowledge, that I had it harder. It’s not for the telling, not for the proof. Not for the hope someone gets it when I’m through. [Read More →]
When the Mountain Says No
When the mountain says no, today is not your turn, how do you respond? Do you bow your head and turn for another day, or keep pressing on? [Read More →]
My Overburdened Pack
An unfurling storm, miles away from anywhere, foolish to ascend. The frozen supplies, reminders of poor planning, and my shortcomings. [Read More →]
These Damnable Lessons
What a naive mistake it was, conjured from my innocent youth, to desire an arduous cause delivering some worldly truth. Because when the day came knocking and all was suddenly upturned, I would have done most anything to avoid what I had to learn. [Read More →]
The First Day
They said there was no other way, but all of their ways made me ill, and as they drained my light away, they offered me another pill. And when my body couldn’t heal they said it must be in my mind. So they wanted me not to feel, but I continued to decline. [Read More →]
Praise for the Conveyer Belt Managers
In every household, there is a battle, of that, I have never had any doubt: one that carries in all of the chattel and one that carries all of it back out. [Read More →]
On the Cusp
I can feel it. Not the coming of fame or some major accomplishment. No societal achievement that no one else could tame. You won’t see it. [Read More →]
That First Apartment
Inside is the vague smell of dust but it fades with conversation, and despite the overt presence of old, unwanted furniture, the noisy fridge and broken stove, waves of warm voodoo flick the air. [Read More →]
The How
You’ve got your reasons, everyone does. That’s not the story. Though we read book after book telling us that if it were not for the reasons, the hero would never make it. [Read More →]
The Only Vessel
The odds suggested it would never sail and carry the plans drafted on the hard, but against lightning, hurricanes and hail, it proved itself deserving of regard. [Read More →]
Silence
Silence can terrify so many unprepared, who were unaware that the sun can possibly rise twice in the same day [Read More →]
A Trail Appears
How could in all my plodding of these streets, I never noticed its presence before? And never knew that by keeping my feet, I was walking past Sanctuary’s door? [Read More →]
Warmer Winters
You’ve noticed it, haven’t you? The lakes that no longer freeze? The January rains? Has it caused your mind to flinch and consider the possibility of different climates? Of warmer winters? [Read More →]
Indomitable Faith
It doesn’t come from the good times, victories or rewards, or from answered prayers submitted by genuine appeal. It’s not found in the lofty goals you are running towards, or when the inconceivable comes calling you to kneel. [Read More →]
The Evening Blue
The river pours and fjords its way, bursting over seams in the glade, calling bramble and brash to play before exhaling in cascade. Where it cannot push, it dances, when it cannot burrow, it… [Read More →]