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205 acknoWledgments My​poetry​has​been​blessed​by​supportive​and​encouraging​people​from​all​parts​ of​my​life​for​as​long​as​I​can​remember:​family​members,​neighbors,​teachers,​ librarians,​readers,​friends,​students,​writers,​poets,​fans,​acquaintances,​chance​ encounters,​healers,​comrades,​editors,​publishers​.​.​.​I​could​never​even​begin​ to​thank​everyone​here,​but​it​is​my​pleasure​to​add​a​few​special​acknowledgments ​that​stand​in​for​many​more:​to​Jane​Clow,​Cara​Forte,​Jen​Fox,​Deborah​ Tallerico,​and​all​my​circles​and​covens​for​keeping​me​connected​to​the​Muse;​to​ teachers​far​too​many​to​name,​but​especially​Marie​Borroff,​Penelope​Laurans,​ Ntozake​Shange,​and​Diane​Wood​Middlebrook;​to​Jennifer​Lunden,​Jan​Perkins,​ Dick​Schoenbrun,​and​the​many​talented​and​compassionate​healers​who​helped​ me​uncover​the​path​to​these​poems;​to​Wendy​Ashley​and​Gretchen​Lawlor​and​ seers​who​illuminated​the​way;​to​Ann​Bogart,​Stefania​deKennessey,​Deborah​ Drattell,​Cait​Johnson,​Assunta​Kent,​Laura​Manning,​Libby​Marcus,​Mihku​ Paul,​Bruce​Rockwell,​Lisa​Siders,​and​other​artists​of​music,​painting,​photography ,​sculpture,​architecture,​book​arts,​puppetry,​theater,​and​dance​who​inspired ​so​much​of​this​poetry​by​sharing​the​gift​of​creative​collaboration;​to​colleagues ​in​poetry​far,​far,​far​too​many​to​name,​but​especially​Kazim​Ali,​Cynthia​ Hogue,​Carolyn​Kizer,​Stephen​Motika,​Molly​Peacock,​and​Sonia​Sanchez,​each​ of​whom​believed​in​my​work​at​a​time​when​it​kept​me​going;​to​Dabney​Finch​ and​Tara​Wegryn​and​the​young​soldier​on​the​Delta​flight,​for​reminding​me​ that​my​poems​can​and​do​reach​people​anywhere;​to​Lee​Bricetti,​Alice​Quinn,​ and​other​inspiring​supporters​of​poetry;​to​Alix​Baer​Bacon,​Erica​Bogin,​Leslie​ France,​ Kristen​ Ghodsee,​ Tom​ Glushko,​ Gabrielle​ Jonas,​ Tamara​ Razi,​ Marie​ Trus​ cott,​and​the​others​who​helped​me​never​feel​alone;​to​Colleen​Donovan​ and​all​the​friends​and​neighbors​who​helped​provide​a​village​for​my​children​during ​the​years​many​of​these​poems​were​written;​to​my​remarkable​clans​of​origin,​ Finch,​Ridley,​Crane,​Baker,​Hughan,​West,​Donaldson,​and​Rockwell,​for​their​ passionate​involvement​and​commitment​to​art,​poetry,​and​spirit,​many​generations ​deep—especially​my​father​Roy​Finch,​perpetually​eager​to​talk​poetry,​ and​my​mother​Margaret​Rockwell​Finch,​my​first​and​deepest​poetic​model;​ to​Robin​Talbot,​Heather​Magaw,​and​all​at​University​of​Southern​Maine​and​ Stonecoast​MFA​for​their​humor​and​patience​as​I​balance​all​my​jobs;​to​my​ amazing​children​Julian​and​Althea,​for​inspiring​me​so​deeply​and​for​a​million​ rich​and​clear​conversations​on​poetic​topics​big​and​small;​and​to​Patricia​Monaghan ​and​Michael​McDermott​for​tender​and​brilliant​matronage​and​patronage​ of​the​highest​creative​order. ​ Finally​I​would​like​to​thank​Glen​Brand​for​his​caring​husbandry​of​my​life,​ my​poetry,​and​my​heart.​Since​1985,​Glen​has​encouraged​me​in​despair,​com- 206 forted​me​in​rejection,​listened​to​me​in​loneliness,​and​celebrated​with​me​in​ triumph;​he​has​shared​poetry​aloud,​endured​sleep​broken​by​flashlights​and​ computer​screens,​brought​me​a​well-​ timed​pen​and​notebook​on​more​than​one​ occasion,​and​helped​me​through​the​difficult​and​challenging​logistics​of​a​poetic​ career​with​a​ready​sense​of​humor,​brilliant​and​level-​ headed​insights,​and​unwavering ​support.​He​has​also,​as​this​book​will​attest,​inspired​many​love​poems.​ I​could​never​have​asked​for​a​more​magnificent​mate​to​accompany​me​on​the​ path​of​poetry,​and​this​book​would​not​be​itself​without​him. ​ The​poems​in​this​volume​first​appeared​in​the​following​journals​and​collections ,​to​the​editors​of​which​I​render​grateful​acknowledgment: ​ “Homebirth”​ first​ appeared​ in​ Prairie Schooner.​ “Abortion​ Spell”​ first​ appeared ​as​“The​Kiss:​A​Rhyme​for​Blood​and​Peace”​in​Women’s Studies Quarterly .​“Stone​and​Cloth​and​Paper”​first​appeared​in​print​as​“Rainy​Day​Room”​ in​Cerise Press.​“Frost’s​Grave”​first​appeared​in​Visiting Frost: Poets Inspired by the Life and Work of Robert Frost.​“Tarot:​The​Magician​Card”​first​appeared​in​Yale Review​and​subsequently​in​The Wolf​(U.K.).​“Keys”​first​appeared​in​The American Scholar.​“Beach​of​Edges”​first​appeared​in​Villanelles.​“Earth​Day”​first​appeared ​on​the​Friends of Ballona Wetlands​website​and​was​circulated​by​the​Sierra​ Club​as​a​“Daily​Ray​of​Hope.”​“Goddess”​appeared​in​Walking between the Stars.​ “Speak​Softly”​appeared​as​“The​Native​American​Birds”​in​Kansas Quarterly.​“A​ Small​Sound​in​the​Dark​Woods”​appeared​in​Ars Interpres​(Stockholm...

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