George Herbert’s “The Pulley” is one of the first poems that I can recall making an impression on me. Way back, I suspect, in some high school English class (poor teacher!), I sat only mildly interested when this poem grabbed hold of me. What struck me then, and what I still admire, is...

It could be that my location in Minnesota – and, actually, this weekend even further north in Minot, North Dakota! – that makes this poem so appealing to me. Those from warmer climes, I suspect, may wonder at its somewhat dour tone. Summer’s end, some may protest, is not occasion for...

As I’ve said before, I struggle with poetry. I am, I think, an impatient reader. I value clarity of thought and precision of expression. Poetry, though, doesn’t walk in straight lines. It makes you think. There is an elegance as well as precision in poetry, but it is hard won. But...

There is a candor about Stephen Dunn’s “At The Smithville Methodist Church” that I find incredibly attractive. He is candid about his own lack of faith, his own skepticism, without being antagonistic. But he is also candid about where lack of belief falls short:...

I will be spending the coming week with the good folks who organized and are participating in St. Olaf College’s Conference on Worship, Theology, and the Arts. One of the guest faculty is poet Christian Wiman. One of the first poems I’d shared at this site was his “Every...

We had a very different Fourth of July this year. My daughter, Katie, was participating in the annual Youth of the Year competition at the Minnesota North Start Morgan Americana Horse Show. Which meant that we spent most of the day with her at the MN State Fair Grounds in recording-setting 100...