Alan Birkelbach

One Like Silence

Arts & Literature

“In the poem ‘Provision’: ‘Consider the bowl of the body.’ This poem attempts to define ownership using objects from the mundane to the holy. The questions in this poem—‘the bounteous marrow of this poverty’—are answered by the rest of the book. There is, ultimately, much to be thankful for, after much ‘dangerous and determined love,’ (something incredibly human and exquisitely put), that yes, we need to consider, and own, the bowl of our temporal and spiritual body. Few books have this much wisdom.”