Poet Healed

This selection of writings is mostly from the first two years of my participation in LAMP at the Sutter Resource Center’s Library. Many of them are in response to prompts involving an object or a poem. I believe that Chip, as group leader and one of Pat Schneider’s disciples, garnered quite a few exercises from her book, Writing Alone and With Others. Her workshops and the Amherst Artists and Writers Group also inspired him. Other writings are in response to people and events of the time that I was able to express as a writer. Some of the inspirations for these writings are a phrase or a line from a poem; some are discussed in the footnotes. The writings are somewhat loosely organized according to the following themes: Health Issues, Autobiographical, Family and Friends, and Life and Living. In the spirit of Pat Schneider and Chip Spann, I have observed and now report—in writing. Most of these writings are minimally edited, although I do include some before and after writings. There are a few that are incomplete; they are the beginnings of stories that you might see again later. I invite you to join me in my journey toward wholeness. If you find that you are drawn to a particular piece, please let me know. For the enjoyment of copy editors, I have left a few errors.