Robert Harrison

"Close to the Sun" by Cotton Mather - The Creative is the gateway to the I Ching, and according to Confucius, the key to understanding all the subsequent readings. The hexagram is formed by doubling the figure of "Qian" translated…

The Middle of Nowhere

Slip the moorings of the all familiar 

Get into a second car and go 

Somewhere late 

Looking out the window and I see we're in another state 

Now we're standing, and the clouds rush the sky 

…

The Land of Flowers 

Welcome to the land of flowers 

Everything is overgrown 

There lie my idle hours 

Underneath this unmarked stone 

You could say your once great prince 

Surrendered his kingdom to the wild 

But we’ll take back some…

Child Bride

seldom a favorite reading to receive and typically a reminder that my life is an ongoing exhibit of lessons unlearned. for instance i can tell you that if you're ever going to jump over a fence on Halloween…

What is it that so energizes us about the enemy? My sister recently recalled how positively giddy my parents became during the Watergate hearings. How they couldn't wait to turn on the television after lunch to watch Sam Irving, Howard…

Sophora secundiflora, perennial legume, 

USDA Hardiness Zone 8 

In the movie Camelot, Julie Andrews chalked it all up to the "lusty month of May" when she up and flung herself into the arms of Robert Goulet, while Richard Harris took…

In our kudzu cathedral 

Nothing need be said 

The simplicity of love

I first met DeWitt Finley after he was gone. My brother introduced us. Joseph Harrison is a tremendous poet-  and if you think I'm showing family favoritism then consider instead the endorsements of Richard Wilbur, Harold Bloom and the late…

When I taught a first grade class last week I asked the children to draw a picture of Spring, which has come early to Texas this year. One little boy sheepishly raised his hand and when I knelt down beside…

A phone call came in one Saturday afternoon from one of my rock star friends to let me know he'd just been recognized by a fan in an Ohio shopping mall! Before I had a chance to offer my condolences…

What Became Of Your Lamb, Clarice? 

There's a bar near my house that I used to go to about once a week for a beer and to watch sports at the end of the night. And this woman who works…

Chutes and Ladders 

If the I Ching was a game tracking your life's journey, it wouldn't so much resemble roulette as it would chutes and ladders. You know, the children's board game where you try to go from start to…