______________ We have a sacred history with those we remain bonded to. We know what each scar and crease in their life means.   Things Carried Through the Fire My grandfather’s Talmud. Your picture of Uncle Billy. The innocence of our dog. The things I never show the world. The things I never show myself. The things we believe in. The dream I no longer need. The uncertainty at the center of all my plans. The small flame that keeps... Read more

______________ Even on good days, there’s always a sliver of resistance burrowed in the bottom of our character, just to keep us humble.   NOTHING ELSE TO SAY An orchard in May thousands of blossoms hiding the fruit and after a long day the sun intensifies flushing out the one crow hiding like the one dark thing we won’t let go of. A Question to Walk With: Journal about a resistance you carry in the bottom of your character and... Read more

______________ The truth of things waits out of view ready to surprise us when we least expect it. I learned the truth of this while out in the marsh one day at twilight.   Lost Speech The more that falls away, the more knit I am to things before they speak; drawn into the waters of silence. When I listen carefully, I am drawn be- low the words of those speaking, into the current using them, as the wind uses... Read more

______________ Everything in nature is bruised and worn. This is how each tree and hill gets its beauty. We are no different.   Inside Out I was taken aback, when joining a fitness club, at the history of my body: a rib removed, torn ligaments in an ankle, torn muscle in a knee, torn meniscus in the other, arthritic thumbs, a skull bone worn thin by a tumor.   At first, I felt battered, but smiled to realize that I... Read more

______________ The challenge of poetry is that the only things worth saying are those things that are unsayable. The joy of such work is that whatever we come up with is more than enough.   WHAT MATTERS IS UNSAYABLE As a boy, my father introduced me to the sea. Something in it was his home. It held him and received him. He would sail on it for hours, days—weeks if he could get away. It was on that boat that... Read more

______________   If we would only honor our soul with the same commitment we honor dear friends. HONORING YOUR FRIEND Each of us has a particular piece of wisdom, which we might describe as truth made possible by love. Each of us with a bit of eternity that if not brought forward will be lost; or at least stay silent during our time on earth. This piece of inner wisdom which is in everything and yet which you alone carry... Read more

______________   When young, we want to dive into everything. But as we age, we surrender more than dive, and so feel the magic of the wind along the way.   When Young I Dove When young I dove to the bottom of the sea. Now I know there is no bottom. Time after time, impaled by falling into life or cut by the fear and envy of others, I was certain I would never recover. But here I am,... Read more

______________   All the valuable things we can learn from books point to the force of life that can’t be contained in a book. This poem explores this paradox. CATCHING THE LIGHT Forget the books and the dogma. Faith is a chance that appears when on the run. When lost in the tangled wood, there’s a patch of light and for a second it seems clear. If you can get there and open your chest to the sun, things will... Read more

______________   We fall in and out of the deepest understandings out in the world while getting groceries and pumping gas. ANOTHER DAY I was in the market recently, when I closed my eyes until the cup without thought at the base of all I know began to collect the tenderness of those who’ve gone before us and I heard the cries of the world. I looked at everyone walking by and it was clear. It’s tenderness that forces us... Read more

______________ During my cancer journey, I was able to see my heart on a screen during a test in which I was injected with radioactive dye, so they could trace the first pass of blood through the first chamber of my heart. It was an experience that changed my understanding of heart. THE HISTORY OF MY HEART It has pumped strong since my first breath. At first it grew like a fish, no limbs, no eyes; just swimming in place... Read more