Introduction

One of my great joys is reading aloud for audiences who take delight in frolicking with language. They enjoy not only the literal content of words in these and other poems, but also the aural sensuality of them, the rhythmic undulations, the melodic cling-binging belltones and thunderbooms above and beyond rational content. Along with some of the printed poems, I include an audio reading as well. In a separate Audio Reading section there are many audio readings without text.

Words can be infinitely more suggestive and stimulating than dictionaries make them out to be. In several of these poems I follow Lewis Carroll's lead in Alice and Wonderland and intentionally create a "Jabberwocky" language, in which I juxtapose conventional words with nonsense-words that take on "sense" within their context by virtue of sound and placement — they may thwart the insecure, over-controlling egoist, but they will delight the playful, imaginative child within us.

Some of these poems are "speed-readers," designed to be read aloud as fast as possible — tongue twisting, exhilarating wordrides, as thrilling to write and read as they are delightful to listen to.

From twenty-one books of poetry, I selected the poems you see here. In terms of content, the journey is inner and intangible. It is psychological and spiritual. I invite you to play in fields of music and linguistic imagination, and dance and sing through all levels and colors of the rainbow spectrum of consciousness.

Initially in life, the first step in the interior journey involves self-realization. Along the way, some individuals find themselves at odds with a society that would destroy authenticity to protect its own interests and promulgate its own values. Eventually, with luck, work, skill and courage, those individuals may evolve through and beyond narcissism, personal needs and concerns, and come to recognize the Other.

In relationships, we discover desire, pleasure, and personal love — the many shades of passion, the colors of sensuality, the hues of affection, the dark nights of rejection, the bright light of love that's deep and true and lasting.

If and when we ascend into transpersonal domains of the psyche and the soul, we soar beyond egocentricity into the radiant realm of love and compassion for ourselves, our friends and compatriots, for all human beings throughout the world, and for all living plants and animals. Awakened Masters from cultures in virtually every historical era have spoken of these all-inclusive spheres of mind and soul, which are accessible to each and every one of us.

Among the poems, I delve into all of these dimensions. Join me, won’t you?

Poems: