Tatiana

These poems were written in response to two events, one deeply affecting a family and friends, the other affecting thousands of families and an entire nation. The first was the death of Tatiana Prosvirnina, a high school student who attended my English class the year before she died. At the time of her death I wrote a collection of poems to preserve her memory beyond the thoughts and feelings of those who knew her. The first part of this book contains those early poems.

The second event was the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which occurred three years after Tatiana died. My reaction to this tragedy was not one of anger, but one of dismay and sadness. To sort out my thoughts and feelings, I returned to the Tatiana poems, but in a very disillusioned frame of mind. This section expresses my belief that the evolution of human society, culture, and technology has become dangerous and grotesque and that humanity is in need of a new spiritual orientation.

The recent terrorist acts in Paris and in San Bernardino and the endless bloodletting in the Middle East confirm my belief that a new worldview is required, one that will give priority to understanding, appreciating, and preserving the earth and its creatures and to protecting and advancing the best of what human civilization has thus far achieved.

This new worldview is actually very old. It was discarded by theology and modernity but not forgotten by artists. And it can be reawakened at any time by an individual who seeks an earthly form of spiritualization and purpose. All that is required is to become an appreciative, discerning witness to the wonders of nature. This means any person is able to realize humanity’s highest achievement. So even if the human world appears to be retrogressing, that person can redeem humanity’s presence in the Universe.