Being creative is a huge part of being human. Everyday, in a myriad of ways, we follow our innate creative impulses - by planting a garden, cooking a meal, taking a photo. I believe who we are as individuals is rooted in what we feel called to make or communicate.  By following our own authentic impulses as creators, we come to know ourselves and our place in the world.

The practice of writing poems has been a major creative focus for me for a long time. I was shy as a kid, and writing gave me another way to communicate. I find myself returning to this form again and again because of its refinement and   expressive potential. I love that poems require us to use the basic building blocks of language - words that we speak everyday - in wildly imaginative ways to tap the deeper truths of our lives.