"Most everyone at Fort Lyon is in some form of recovery, and the more time I spent hearing the stories that led into addictions and life on the streets but also the stories of strength and courage and overcoming, I began to get a real glimpse, for the first time in my life, of the world of recovery. It’s a world where courage and grace meet daily, and though it’s a place I haven’t myself lived, it’s a place I can recognize from afar, to a small degree, from the not-too-distant shore of my own human struggles, and the writing life itself. I stand in awe, and even perhaps jealousy, of the choices the residents and staff here make on a daily basis to create a life that is self-aware, humble, proactive, and other-oriented."

Read the rest of my reflection in my blog post, "The Equality of Chaos, the Beauty of of the Broken," at the Lighthouse Writers Workshop Blog!

There you can also find an Erasure poem by my student Kat, a nature-inspired poem by my student Sam, and a poem about "The Worst Day" by my student Jason.

Teaching poetry at the Fort Lyon Supportive Residential Community was a dream come true, and I don't use that phrase lightly. In this place, the rubber hits the road, and if poetry doesn't matter in a place like Fort Lyon, my theory is, it doesn't matter at all. (Spoiler: it mattered, a lot.) I am hopeful for a chance to visit again someday soon.