writer & poet
(This is excerpted from my December Tethered Letter, a monthly long-form letter including reflections on faith, creativity, and home life along with the latest news and recommendations. You can sign up to receive these here. )
Recently I’ve been … read full post
There is poetry in the furrows of a field rent asunder,
and a wonder in the burrows of the small things’ furtive songs.
There is music in the lighting of a robin on a fencepost,
and it’s almost like a … read full post
One year ago this week (technically on the 14th), I released my book solace: poems for the broken season into the world. And in honor of that day, here’s the complete playlist for the book – a song for every … read full post
Along the path I’m wearing thin
between this place and that
stands a wide field, some years corn
and some years soybeans.
And today,
the corn is shorn close
like the back of a sheep
and the honey wagon trundles … read full post
We piled them in barrows,
body on body,
and carted them to the pit.
We lifted them into
the ashes of their kin,
and my youngest scattered
ragged remnants across the lawn.
When we lit them
their skins crackled and … read full post
Father, we give You praise that
Your purpose prevails,
That You have directed the hearts of many,
like creeks into rivers
and rivers to the sea,
to select in our nation our leaders.
We give You thanks that
You hold … read full post
Note: This story is the second in an anthology based on prompts from #inktober2020; you can read the first story here.
(Chicago, Illinois, 2009)
Kate sighed, puffing out her cheeks and willing her other self in the mirror to … read full post
(Somewhere in the rural Midwest, 1964)
Miller held up the hook, squinting in the half-light at the worm wriggling between his thumb and forefinger. He paused for a moment, watching it squirm and lash its length around. Then he sighed, … read full post
All along they were
breaking, each bud
crowning into the bright
daylight of a new spring,
emerging from treetops like
feathers pluming out of caps,
green against the golden
halls of April.
In the woods on the longest day,
July … read full post
It’s been a brisk, clear-blue-sky kind of day here in Indiana – the perfect start to autumn.
Of all seasons, autumn is by far my favorite. Though I love the changes – the reminder I need that every day is … read full post