From the back of the bookSometimes we need space in our lives for quiet, for reflection, for getting our bearings again and for conversation that goes deeper than the weather and the price of gas. That quiet conversation is what Beverly Finney offers in her new book Cracks in the Dark.Inspired by lines in a song by the late Leonard Cohen, Beverly has assembled a collection of her poems to reflect on where we can find light in times of darkness. Light, she suggests, can be borrowed, revealed in reflection, sought after in a quest for deeper understanding, nestled in cherished memories.She encourages you to underline, highlight, scribble in the margins and write on the pages provided throughout the collection to record where you find light in your own dark times. And she invites you to share those with her if you'd like to continue the conversation. Advance praise for Cracks in the Dark...In the art world artists often say that one aspect of the process of making a painting is the joy of the "long look" they hope viewers will take as they linger in front of the piece.Beverly's work comes from taking a long look at day-to-day circumstances and describing them physically and emotionally. She incorporates mindfulness, the ability to observe the environment in a non-judgmental way and acknowledge that it is all you have at the moment. Her work evokes a visceral response and, often for me, a sense that I have experienced something similar. That response is one of hope, joy and the familiarity and universality of the human experience. -John Worm, The Counseling GroupAbout the Author"Writing at this stage in my life offers me a perspective shaped by decades of experience. And hopefully, the maturity to temper that perspective with heart."She grew up surrounded by her grandfather's farm and a large extended family in Catawba County, North Carolina. Her blue-collar parents made their livings in the shops and factories in that same county, dreaming of college for their kids.Beverly graduated from Mars Hill College, now University, set in the western part of her home state near Asheville, North Carolina. She double-majored in elementary education and English before completing her MA in English at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina.In her twelve years with Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute in Hudson, North Carolina, she established their first developmental English program, then gravitated to administrative work to eventually become the institution's first full-time public information officer.That experience led to her 25 years with Blue Ridge Energy, a rural energy cooperative serving a five-county area in the Blue Ridge mountains and foothills. "Those co-op members, the deeply dedicated employees and the beauty of the area got in my blood. I left a good chunk of my heart there."Now that she's retired, Beverly's work is writing. Her first collection, Bearing Witness, was published in 2019 by Third Lung Press (now Redhawk Publications) and is available on Amazon. "It's my way of 'bearing witness' to life, to living and to what I think it means to be human. Cracks in the Dark continues that theme.
