I rarely go back and read books I’ve written. I prefer working on new manuscripts. Thumbing through Communion, a book published twenty-five years ago, is a journey to my past. Places I visited: San Francisco, Mexico, India, Pakistan, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and long drives between Santa Fe and Cincinnati. I find stories people told me and references to what I was reading and what I was thinking and feeling.

I remain grateful to Dr. Nicolas Kanellos and Arte Público Press, for publishing my first book Chants (1984), and my next two poetry collections Borders (1986), and Communion (1991). Poetry for all ages remains my favorite genre. Unfortunately, poetry doesn’t sell well, placing manuscripts is a challenge, and I wonder who will read what I’ve worked on and be sustained by the words.

Yes, we are technologically savvy, fast-paced and a highly visual society, but individually and collectively, what is lost in our reluctance to be still and reflective?
Pat