Quill Pens and Steam Engines
Before I tell you more about my quest for the forgotten grandfather in my life, we have two places to visit. The first takes us back to the era of …
Cyprus Antiquities and Art
One of the things that has fueled our long interest in visiting Cyprus is the collection of glass and pottery that my grandparents brought back with them and that has …
Turnings in Profile
I have been spending a lot of time lately reworking the poems in a collection I am calling Turnings. I have been sending it out, in various versions, to publishers …
On Poetry, Moravians, and Public Life
Last week I joined my friend Michael Beadle to present a few of our poems to a recently formed group concerned with the relation of art to faith. Called “ArtGroup,” …
On Blogging and Publishing
Is a “blog,” which is what they call these items I post on this site, a “publication”? In confronting recent discussions of this question I began to wonder if there …
Collaboration in Time and Space
Two events involving my son Eric coalesce to begin our new year. The first involves his trans-Atlantic collaboration with my god-daughter Anja Decke to put on a multi-lingual version of …
Beginning Again
In the past year my wife, Sylvia, has pulled back from her big artistic projects and gone back to the piano, which took a back seat to her other pursuits …
Tsunami Wings
The earthquake and tsunami that devastated Sendai, Japan, last March continues to reverberate in our minds and hearts, just as the painful task of recovery continues for the Japanese people. …
Raising the Quilt Square
Over the past few years, in nearby Yancey and Mitchell counties, the Toe River Arts Council has made and installed over two hundred painted quilt blocks on barns, stores, and …