Why I Love Appalachia: “Blue Ridge Weather Report”

In this glorious, but all-too-brief season in Appalachia, killing frost silences the nights except for the rustle of branches. Color steals across the trees, and leaves begin to drop. I wrote this poem after relocating to the South and falling in love (again) with autumn in the Blue Ridge.

The Thin Veil Between Life, Love, and Death

A World War II pharmacist mate (medic) born on November 11, my dad treated his first patients during WWII. In his office, a floral watercolor featuring 1 Corinthians 13:4-13 hung on his wall—directly behind every patient. “4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.”

Chattahoochee: Songs I Never Heard Till Now (for my mother)

I’ll be at the Decatur Book Festival, one of Atlanta’s premier literary events, October 3 and 4, signing copies of The Tears of Things: Poems (Booth 46, East Ponce de Leon Avenue). That’s why I’ve chosen to read a poem inspired by the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.