thoughts and songs from Heather
These posts feature poems I have written—from light-hearted narrations of my reading in verse to deeply personal versions of Psalms.
My new home is beautiful, but…I can hear the highway, and there are these flies…In this poem I contemplate the deeper meaning of these things. Like many of my poems recently, this was written on my phone (sitting outside) and … Continued
I was staring at the hills, thinking how glad I am that they are so still. And then I started thinking about the pain and darkness in different friends’ lives… Halfway through, the poem insisted on being in the second … Continued
I’m trying my hand at writing in a “traditional storytelling” style–it is a different kind of verse! Here is a fragment of a tale from a medieval Saint’s Life; my retelling is inspired by a translation in Helen Waddell’s Beasts … Continued
Sometimes holding still is the bravest thing to do. It is no joke to weep with those who weep, To let their pain be real and stay right there, Set down the urge to salvage or to sweep Away the … Continued
v.1: When my hands are empty and aching My dream burned down to ash God’s power is made perfect in weakness He will use my “yes” at last chorus: The barren hills are holy hearts plowed up with pain this … Continued
What is fulfillment? I was recently reminded of this poem—the first thing I ever posted on this site, and probably my favorite of all the poems I have written. It is my attempt to delve into Psalm 1. This poem … Continued
One day I had an intense prayer walk. In the image of a George Herbert poem, I felt that I was thundering at heaven. As I thought about it later, I realized that intercessory prayer has shifted as I have … Continued
While reading the beautiful prayers of Thomas Cramner in the Book of Common Prayer, I decided to try writing in his style. A Prayer for Time Almighty and Most Merciful God, who holdest all time in thy hands, and bestowest … Continued
Here is a poem first “published” as a text message! After reading Helen Gardner’s introduction to The Metaphysical Poets, I decided to write my “narration” (re-telling in my own words some of what I learned) in verse! Gardner suggested that … Continued
My belief in Jesus does not make him more real! It might, however, make me more real… In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine Sonnet” Project. Each day, we each tried to … Continued
Feeling humbled as I read about scholars of the humanities in the Renaissance, in this poem I reflected on scholarly ambition and my own self-image. In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine … Continued
I had just been teaching my Latin students about chiasm, the literary device that makes a kind of mirror of repeated words, or concepts, or grammatical forms–and often nests the most crucial thing in the very middle. This poem considers … Continued
thoughts on the much-maligned study of grammar, and on why humans actually enjoy learning details… In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine Sonnet” Project. Each day, we each tried to write a … Continued
I had been reading about medieval meditation, and on Good Friday I imagined Christ’s passion as a form of study. In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine Sonnet” Project. Each day, we … Continued
I start this poem remembering a day full of the joy of learning, in graduate school…then reflect on how rare and precious that was in my education, and how I long to see it in my daughters’ days. In April … Continued
Reflecting on how naked it feels to make or learn, compared to the comfort of critiquing and teaching—and how wonderful it is, after all. In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine Sonnet” … Continued
Imagining what it feels like for Jesus to relive that day every year, as his people remember. In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine Sonnet” Project. Each day, we each tried to … Continued
Swatting at to-do lists, I imagine a more instinct-driven life. In April of 2020, living under stay-at-home orders, my daughters and I began the “Quarantine Sonnet” Project. Each day, we each tried to write a sonnet, and we posted them … Continued
“You are holy…” “I praise your name…” Does it seem like you’ve sung the same words of praise a hundred times? This morning? A villanelle is a poetic form in which two whole lines must be re-used in a strict … Continued
I’ve never used an actual shield…but every day I feel the need of some kind of shielding, and I started this psalm-poem thinking about that need for protection and escape. It moves on, of course, from there through all the … Continued
Some Psalms cry out in pain…we rarely sing those verses in our praise songs or print them on posters or pin them on pinterest, but the songs of God’s people are often full of agony mixed in with faith and … Continued
“Sweet God, turn to me, I turn to you…” From “wooly thoughts” to “echoes laid straight,” here is my version of Psalm 5, “Spinning.” (My sister Lindsay and I are writing poems based on each of the psalms in order. … Continued
From “speak softness when I make an ugly noise” to “amplify, great God, turn up the shine”–I love the way psalms move from one emotional place to another, like a river sweeping the reader along. Here is Lindsay’s version of … Continued
