Kirjahaku

A book of narrative/free verse poetry where a story is told, where rhythm and metered beat do not apply. Poems based on themes that move the poet.....life, love, loss, family, nature, places of the heart.

As a sports fan, you never know when you are seated in a grandstand, of any kind, just which of those events might unfold in such a way that you are impacted for life. I have been fortunate to have witnessed so many such sporting events that have done just that for me. Read about what I saw from my seats. Sometimes in a packed and noisy Junior B hockey arena, sometimes experiencing the highs and the lows at the Olympic Games, watching a marathon superstar do his thing, being lifted out of my seat at an indoor track meet where I discovered a new hero to embrace, learning a life lesson at my father's side in a wooden grandstand at a men's league fastball game. Read how minor hockey parents can impact the lives of young kids who really just want to have play and have fun and how a stadium peanut vendor got inside my head for decades. And oh, the day we tore the goalposts down. Sometimes the only seat affordable or available was on my parents' livingroom couch with my father sitting beside me. Those, too, brought cherished memories.

A down-on-his-luck man decides that, after eight years (or is it nine) of being estranged from his daughter, it is the right time to seek her out for reunification. She has never been out of his thoughts. The man, Barton Sorensen, ran way when his wife ran off with another man, taking their daughter with her. He didn't stick around to fight for custody. Heart broken and embarrassed, he quickly left Abilene, Texas heading north without having a predetermined destination. He ended up in Northern Manitoba. In time, the economy in the Manitoba mining town took a serious hit. Barton who was an illegal immigrant in Canada and his new partner, Marjorie, lost their jobs and ended up being homeless. This is the story of them picking up the pieces and heading out to relocate Barton's daughter. Most of their travelling is done by hopping aboard boxcars on south bound freight trains. Get to know some of the people that these two nomads meet up with and experience some of their harrowing experiences. Barton is haunted throughout the journey by doubting that his now sixteen- year-old daughter would want to have him back in her life. The reader shares his doubts. Marjorie is the wind at his back. Hop on the boxcars and join their journey.

A cowboy's life is tough at the best of times but when that cowboy's name is Myrtle, life becomes even more arduous. Myrtle Cassidy, named after his sharp-shooting grandmother, is a cowboy for hire, making a living taking on various trail jobs and having to deal with the rigors presented. He is law abiding and takes much pride in living by the cowboy code. His regular working partner is a tough dude named Jimmy Sanderson who is unable to turn down the come-on of saloon working women, would gamble down to his last asset which in one case is his last couple of cigarettes. He likes his whiskey, goes looking for fist fights and often speaks of wishing for a good gun fight. Follow along the trails with Myrtle and Sanderson, experiencing their numerous trials and tribulations. Complications arise when two unique women come into their lives. Will the 'cowboy' in each of these two cowboys survive?