Monthly Archives: April 2018

Juan Felipe Herrera visits

Posted on April 30, 2018 by Maren

Before he visits, I read Juan Felipe with thirty-five new friends, themselves born in twenty-three countries, and his words find my heart. “Look up and see the stars,” he writes, and I have done that especially when my life was … Continue reading →

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There and back again

Posted on April 27, 2018 by Maren

A great good thing about books is reading about there while staying comfortably in the back again … but into every hobbit hole with the kettle’s tune, yellow knocker, two breakfasts, gardens and lots and lots of pegs because you … Continue reading →

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Three Poems by Isabel de Gruchy, South Africa

Posted on April 26, 2018 by Maren

Grateful to post poems in three very different moods from Isabel De Gruchy’s newest book Not Done Yet. She writes in the opening words: By naming this collection of poems Not Done Yet I may be shouting defiance at the … Continue reading →

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For Toronto, for Canada

Posted on April 23, 2018 by Maren

O Toronto! We mourn your city streets — the broken lives, the silenced words, heartbeats. With saddened hearts we send our prayers, for those who grieve and those who fear both far and near. O Toronto, you stand for so much … Continue reading →

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Reluctant Gratitude, for Nashvile

Posted on April 22, 2018 by Maren

God of peace, we give thanks – for James Shaw who went out for waffles on Nashville’s south side and jumped a shooter — saving lives, risking his own, burning his hands, for first responders who go out again and … Continue reading →

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Guest Posts — Ana Lisa de Jong and Jellaludin Rumi

Posted on April 19, 2018 by Maren

So, here is the story on these two poems. I have been very lucky to read Ana Lisa de Jong’s upcoming book “Heart Psalms” so that I can write a “blurb” or endorsement for it. Wow! It is hard to … Continue reading →

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Our Loss of Barbara Bush

Posted on April 17, 2018 by Maren

God, I give thanks for Barbara Bush, who spoke her mind plainly, who loved deeply and for all her years, who claimed the power of women, named with honestly the dangers of generations of prejudice, and chose literacy as the … Continue reading →

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Two Poems — Washington DC

Posted on April 16, 2018 by Maren

Sometimes it just happens — two so very different poems about — in several ways — the same thing  arrive at the same time. I wrote the next poem after preaching in Bethesda, Maryland. Pastor Dee Ledger … well, you … Continue reading →

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The view from my study window — Guest Post by William A. Deans

Posted on April 12, 2018 by Maren

Glad to share this poem of the seasons of life by William A. Deans. A god piece to read with the singing of “I was there to hear your borning cry” by John Ylvisaker “Time Falls Away.” There are those moments … Continue reading →

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The Work of Easter –Aotearoa / New Zealand … words of Rosalie Sugrue

Posted on April 11, 2018 by Maren

Rosalie Sugrue writes — inspired by my “Work of Easter” a couple days ago and her own context! With thanks to Thurman and Tirabassi (A note to those down under: too many words for Jim Strathdee’s tune) When the song … Continue reading →

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