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Poetry and insights
I’m in love with words, and I love to use the right words to create poems that have clarity and character. I think of my work as “literal poetry.” I don’t put my pen down until I’ve said exactly what I feel, exactly what I mean to say, so that you, as the reader or listener, will have no doubt about it. I want to write poems that don’t need to be explained—what you see is what it is. I want to write poems that express deep human emotions, and very thoughtful observations, and very precise meanings. I am a poet, a writer, a teacher, a moralist, a historian and an unflinching student of human nature. I think a lot. I strive to express truth and give context—both rational and emotional—to reality. I think words can be pictures, and lovely songs, and bodacious scents, and private flavors, and early morning caresses that wake each part of me, one at a time. I know some of those words, and, from time to time, I write some of them.
“More than coffee…” (my poem)
ask me again, Polly…
Upstream: Selected Essays (book review)
it’s not Mary Oliver’s poetry…
not just cookies…my poem
eat the last one
Good Poems: American Places…book review
Garrison Keillor picks a few gems…
“Darkness begs for light…”…“View,” my poem
dawn begins to make its way…
Book Reviews and insights
Reading is part of my life. Old books are companions—they have a palpable essence that will never be duplicated in an eBook reader. I can live with books, inter librorum copias. I don’t read too many novels, although I’m partial to 19th century American and English writers like Dickens and Hawthorne and O. Henry. I’m happy when I’m reading aloud. I wish that I may live long enough to read at least most of the books in my library.
Age Power…book review
Old people are who it’s all about…
Hand me that hammer…my poem
we need to build bridges
The Asking…some poetic insights…book review
Jane Hirshfield writes a lot of poems
Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics…book review
Dan Harris says “even one minute counts”
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie…movie review
Maggie Smith, nonstop…
Historical insights
I think it’s difficult to be a sensitive and sensible human being without some knowledge of history and its enduring elements. An insufficient understanding of history is an impediment to decent participation in human society. I am particularly intrigued by the systematic methods of the French Annalistes to examine the deep structures (longues durées) of history. Awareness and understanding of history allow us to create and sustain a mindful context for our past and present adventures.
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Politics: thoughts and insights
Yelling isn’t my style. I am a committed and, I think, well-informed liberal progressive. It’s my intention to avoid presenting any political commentaries that are doctrinaire, abusive, deliberately hateful or contrary to “…a decent respect to the opinions of mankind…” Maybe you’ll recognize those words from the Declaration of Independence. I respect the value and the necessity of dedicated support for the preservation of the public good. I’m willing to offer my considerations of what constitutes the public good.
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Tidbits
Occasional items that tickle your funny bone, or point your mind in a new direction, or invite you to stop for a moment and listen to what your heart is telling you.
The Woman at the Washington Zoo…book review
Marjorie Williams, straight from the heart
Norma Rae…movie review
big hearts, gushing emotion
Dangerous Liaisons…not a delight (movie review)
a masquerade of amour
Emperor of the North…movie review
“You had the juice, kid…”
With the Old Breed…book review
the prayers of E. B. Sledge, a warfighter
Scent of a Woman (movie review)
an endearing gift…and Pacino’s only Oscar
The African Queen, a love story…movie review
Bogart and Hepburn, don’t you love ‘em?
Chipmunk talk…
…take your time…
Conspiracy…movie review
…a flawless portrayal of naked evil…
The Self-Made Man in America (book review)
Prof. Irvin Wyllie exposes the myth