Sometimes, Middle-earth and Perelandra don’t seem so far away! Over the weekend, my friend Kyle mentioned returning to Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and McCullough’s John Adams for inspiration. They spoke to him of enduring hardship to build a better future. At the same time, I’ve been revisiting The Lord of the Rings filmsContinue reading “Insight from the Inklings”
Author Archives: thedeepened
Be Angry? What about Love?
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from the Birmingham Jail As a teacher, I’ve heard my share of commencement speakers. I wish I couldContinue reading “Be Angry? What about Love?”
Considering the Source
I am a Flyers fan. I know, I know; I’ve lost many of you already. And if I were to predict a playoff series victory against our cross-state rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins, I can only imagine the comments this post would receive. I might even hit a record high since starting this site. But youContinue reading “Considering the Source”
Taking Time to Sabbath
Rest. Despite the unrest that fills the atmosphere, this is where I landed Wednesday night. After toiling for an hour or so with two different ideas, the stillness of an early-June twilight on my good friend’s porch demanded my attention and found its way onto the page. A few drafts later, and with my wife’sContinue reading “Taking Time to Sabbath”
Photo of the Day Poems – Post #17
This final installment of last year’s The Guardian photograph of the day poems leaves me with a hopeful note. Poetry is essential because it reminds us that we are all human and what we’ve struggled with or felt for generations still rings true today. It’s why we still read Shakespeare, Tennyson, Whitman, Dickinson, etc. AndContinue reading “Photo of the Day Poems – Post #17”
Photo of the Day Poems – Post #16
Coming down to the final two weeks of last year’s The Guardian photograph of the day poems, I’m finding it harder to limit my offering to three poems. Two poems from this collection will draw upon that infamous weed that terrorizes the perfect lawns of the gated communities: the dandelion (as photographed in Turkey andContinue reading “Photo of the Day Poems – Post #16”
Photo of the Day Poems – Post #15
From the wonders of a steam engine crossing a trestled bridge to the twenty-nine cellphones that showcase mankind’s insatiable desire for distractions, and ultimately to the serene beauty and innocence of a young girl among a garden full of allium flowers, these poems capture the sometimes awe-inspiring wonder of our world, though not always withContinue reading “Photo of the Day Poems – Post #15”
What it Means to Live
Rather than rush out my three photo inspired poems tonight, I felt we required a journey to the deepening ground of Denise Levertov. I fell in love with this poem when I first read it in the AP English Literature textbook I use by Edgar Roberts. In a time when how we move forward asContinue reading “What it Means to Live”
The Eternal Timely Genius of Wendell Berry
The deepening wells of literature are abundant for those who still care to read, and though I have a long list of works I intend to share here, from T. S. Eliot to Herman Melville, I return to one of my favorites: Wendell Berry. If you’ve been to my site before, you’ll know Berry isContinue reading “The Eternal Timely Genius of Wendell Berry”
“Ballad of the Ideal Citizen”
Years ago I came upon W. H. Auden’s poem “The Unknown Citizen” in preparation for my AP English Literature course. I had been an Auden fan ever since I read “Musee des Beaux Arts” (another worthy read). Ironically, though I teach “Musee” nearly every year in at least one of my courses, I have rarelyContinue reading ““Ballad of the Ideal Citizen””
the deepening ground 