Poems for the Journey

This collection of poems tells stories about a few people and events which have been formative in the poets life. Carefully selected and told from the poets heart these poems invite readers to consider their own personal formative experiences with people places and events.The photos on the pages immediately in front of each poem prompt readers own memories and imaginations.Travelling with Sister Mary Luke Tobin is set in the intimate space between two good friends driving a blue highway toward home in Denver Colorado. The older woman a nun and younger woman the poet like to tell each other stories when they are together. What unfolds on the car ride towards home is a story that resonates with Peters betrayal of Jesus by Peters denying that he knows him. Silence is mentioned and also present all the way through the poem.Like Light in Running water holds up to the light of understanding what the poet knows about her beloved grandfathers story.Waves is a playful yet poignant sestina about the poets family who grew up on the shores of Lake Erie. The repetition and arrangement of the sestiinas selected 6 words at the ends of the lines move the poem along with the energy of growing up. The movement is towards a place of new life.Diamonds and Sutras is also a playful sestina.The Way Things Are Is Large is a villanelle which holds our individual life stories up to the largeness of The Story which seems to be the model or blueprint for all our lives.