I am from a small rural community in Texas where I began writing poetry as a child. I received an MFA From the University of Arkansas in the mid '80s and moved to Virginia to teach at Virginia Tech. Gradually I migrated into the field of mental health. My first collection of poems, Color Documentary, won a Virginia Prize in manuscript and was published by Calyx Books. In 2013, Homeland won the Library of Virginia Poetry Award. Poems have appeared in many journals over the years including Chelsea, Poetry, and Shenandoah. Most recently an ekphrastic poem about losing my mother appeared at Friends of T. C. Steele (tcssteele.org) commemorating his painting "Autumn Landscape". My work has always concerned the revitalization of our spiritual relationships with ourselves, each other, and the natural world. I am delighted to become part of the Sixfold community.