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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.
“Heartbeats,” love never ends, my poem
not so very far away
Want to be a gardener?…“Gardens galore,” my poem
strive to be a seed…
Wait for the feeling to pass…
“Shivering,” my solitary poem
do the bounce thing…“allegro,” my poem
kids make their move
The Book of Days…part lxiv
nature poems about the dawn’s early light…
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.
Society and Culture in America: 1830-1860…book review
Russell Nye tells the big story
“Book-ish,” my poem
open it again
The Gifts of Imperfection…book review
what it is, who you be…Dr. Brené Brown
The Brothers…Civil War storytelling
Jan Kovarik tells the story
“…the hollow men…” and so on
T. S. Eliot, a bloomin’ wasteland…
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.
Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War…book review
the Pilgrims weren’t happy, says Nathaniel Philbrick
Facing East from Indian Country (book review)
Another point of view from Daniel K. Richter
The Bombing of Auschwitz…yay or nay? book review
it was a hard call…
The History of the American Revolution…book review
David Ramsay served in the war
Our Ancient Faith…book review
not really a Lincoln book
Countdown 1945…book review
first person accounts
American Bonds: How Credit Markets Shaped a Nation (book review)
a big part of the American story
Foragers, Farmers, and Fossil Fuels…book review
Ian Morris talks energy
Twilight of the Elites…book review
Our elites are corrupt, they can’t stop themselves…
Eye of the Needle…desperate but human…movie review
living and dying
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.
Book review: The Myths of Tet
How people get killed by lies…
Book review: Shantung Compound
They didn’t care much about each other…
Book review: Forced Founders
Woody Holton explains that Virginia’s “Founding Fathers” had patriotism, and some other stuff, on their minds….
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.
Truth does exist…
…ask Chief Joseph
The Hustler…movie review
action, heart, and soul…
The Things They Carried…book review
feelings may change…
“…remain generous of heart…”…Amor Towles (quote)
all that has happened to us…
Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became Our Identity…book review
fear and anger, not issues…by Lilliana Mason
“endless regret or secret happiness…”
quote from Sarah Orne Jewett
“…profoundly human noise…”
the buzz of the crowd (my poem) “
The Wizard of Oz…you can watch it again
movie review of the Judy Garland version
The Price of Salt…book review
the price of love is always right
The art of Lynn Ungar
A permission, the fields…(poetry)